Selective termination of stimulation to deliver post-stimulation therapeutic effect

ABSTRACT

In some examples, electrical stimulation is delivered to a patient such that selective termination of the stimulation causes a therapeutic effect in the patient after termination of the electrical stimulation to the patient. The electrical stimulation may be insufficient to produce a desired therapeutic effect in the patient during stimulation, but sufficient to induce a post-stimulation desired therapeutic effect following termination of the stimulation. In some examples, the electrical stimulation may be sub-threshold electrical stimulation. In some examples, the desired therapeutic effect may alleviate bladder dysfunction, bowel dysfunction, or other disorders. The stimulation may be selectively terminated in response to one or more therapy trigger events to induce the post-stimulation therapeutic effect.

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.15/661,936, filed Jul. 27, 2017, which is a continuation of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 13/701,654, filed Dec. 3, 2012, which is a NationalStage application under 35 U.S.C. § 371 of International Application No.PCT/US11/039315, filed on Jun. 6, 2011, which claims the benefit of U.S.Provisional Patent Application No. 61/352,179, filed on Jun. 7, 2010,and U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/437,416, filed on Jan.28, 2011. The entire contents of application Ser. Nos. 15/661,936,13/701,654, PCT/US11/039,315, 61/352,179, and 61/437,416 areincorporated herein by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The disclosure relates to medical devices and, more particularly,medical devices that deliver electrical stimulation to a patient.

BACKGROUND

Bladder dysfunction, such as overactive bladder, urgency, or urinaryincontinence, is a problem that may afflict people of all ages, genders,and races. Various muscles, nerves, organs and conduits within thepelvic floor cooperate to collect, store and release urine. A variety ofdisorders may compromise urinary tract performance, and contribute to anoveractive bladder, urgency, or urinary incontinence. Many of thedisorders may be associated with aging, injury or illness.

Urinary incontinence may include urge incontinence and stressincontinence. In some examples, urge incontinence may be caused bydisorders of peripheral or central nervous systems that control bladdermicturition reflexes. Some patients may also suffer from nerve disordersthat prevent proper triggering and operation of the bladder, sphinctermuscles or nerve disorders that lead to overactive bladder activities orurge incontinence.

In some cases, urinary incontinence can be attributed to impropersphincter function, either in the internal urinary sphincter or externalurinary sphincter. For example, aging can result in weakened sphinctermuscles, which may cause incontinence. Nerves running though the pelvicfloor stimulate contractility in the sphincter. An impropercommunication between the nervous system and the urethra or urinarysphincter can result in a bladder dysfunction, such as overactivebladder, urgency, urge incontinence, or another type of urinaryincontinence.

SUMMARY

In general, the disclosure is directed to devices, systems, andtechniques for delivering electrical stimulation to a patient such thatselective termination of the stimulation causes a desired therapeuticeffect in the patient after termination of the stimulation. Theelectrical stimulation is selected to induce a post-stimulationtherapeutic effect after the stimulation is terminated. The electricalstimulation may be selected to be insufficient to cause the desiredtherapeutic effect during stimulation, e.g., such that the desiredtherapeutic effect may occur only after electrical stimulation isterminated. In some examples, the stimulation may be sub-thresholdelectrical stimulation. For example, the stimulation may besub-threshold in the sense that it is insufficient to cause not only thedesired therapeutic effect during stimulation but also insufficient tocause an acute physiological response, such as a motor response, patientperception response, a non-therapeutic effect, or a detectedphysiological effect such as nerve action potentials, duringstimulation. However, the sub-threshold stimulation is selected to besufficient to cause the desired therapeutic effect to occur after thestimulation is terminated. The stimulation may be selectivelyterminated, in some examples, in response to one or more therapy triggerevents to cause the post-stimulation therapeutic effect. As one example,stimulation may be terminated in response to a patient request fortherapy.

In one example, the disclosure is directed to a method that includesdelivering an electrical stimulation to a patient, detecting a therapytrigger event, and terminating the electrical stimulation in response tothe detected therapy trigger event to induce a desired therapeuticeffect in the patient after the termination, wherein the electricalstimulation is selected to be insufficient to cause the desiredtherapeutic effect during the delivery of the electrical stimulation butsufficient to induce the desired therapeutic effect after the deliveryof the electrical stimulation is terminated.

In another example, the disclosure is directed to a system that includesa stimulation delivery module configured to generate and deliverelectrical stimulation to a patient and a control module configured tocontrol the delivery of the electrical stimulation to the patient,detect a therapy trigger event, and terminate the electrical stimulationin response to the detected therapy trigger event to induce a desiredtherapeutic effect in the patient after the termination. The electricalstimulation is selected to be insufficient to cause the desiredtherapeutic effect during the delivery of the electrical stimulation butsufficient to induce the desired therapeutic effect after the deliveryof the electrical stimulation is terminated.

In a further aspect, the disclosure is directed to a system thatincludes means for delivering an electrical stimulation to a patient,means for detecting a therapy trigger event, and means for terminatingthe electrical stimulation in response to the detected therapy triggerevent to induce a desired therapeutic effect in the patient after thetermination, wherein the electrical stimulation is selected to beinsufficient to cause the desired therapeutic effect during the deliveryof the electrical stimulation but sufficient to induce the desiredtherapeutic effect after the delivery of the electrical stimulation isterminated.

In another aspect, the disclosure is directed to an article ofmanufacture that includes a computer-readable storage medium, which canbe non-transitory. The computer-readable storage medium includescomputer-readable instructions for execution by a processor. Theinstructions cause a programmable processor to perform any part of thetechniques described herein. The instructions may be, for example,software instructions, such as those used to define a software orcomputer program. The computer-readable medium may be acomputer-readable storage medium such as a storage device (e.g., a diskdrive, or an optical drive), memory (e.g., a Flash memory, read onlymemory (ROM), or random access memory (RAM)) or any other type ofvolatile or non-volatile memory that stores instructions (e.g., in theform of a computer program or other executable) to cause a programmableprocessor to perform the techniques described herein.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram illustrating an example system thatdelivers electrical stimulation to a patient to manage bladderdysfunction, such as overactive bladder, urgency, or urinaryincontinence, after termination of the stimulation.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an example configuration of animplantable medical device (IMD) which may be utilized in the system ofFIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating an example configuration of anexternal programmer which may be utilized in the system of FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is an example timing diagram of sub-threshold electricalstimulation delivered to induce a therapeutic effect after stimulationtermination.

FIG. 5 is an example graph that illustrates a change in bladdercontractions after terminating the delivery of a sub-thresholdelectrical stimulation.

FIG. 6 is a flow diagram that illustrates an example technique forinducing a therapeutic effect by terminating a sub-threshold electricalstimulation.

FIG. 7 is a flow diagram that illustrates an example technique forinducing a therapeutic effect by terminating a sub-threshold electricalstimulation.

FIG. 8 is a flow diagram that illustrates an example technique formonitoring a physiological state to adjust parameters of a sub-thresholdelectrical stimulation.

FIG. 9 is a graph that illustrates example changes in bladdercontraction frequency in response to the termination of a sub-thresholdelectrical stimulation.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The disclosure is directed to devices, systems, and techniques fordelivering electrical stimulation to a patient such that selectivetermination of the stimulation causes a desired therapeutic effect inthe patient after termination of the stimulation, i.e., apost-stimulation, desired therapeutic effect. The techniques may be usedto provide therapy for a variety of dysfunctions, diseases or disorders.For purposes of illustration, but without limitation, use of thetechniques will be described below with respect to bladder dysfunction.Some of the techniques described in this application may be related toor used in conjunction with techniques described in commonly assignedU.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/352,179, filed Jun. 7,2010, entitled “Stimulation Therapy for Bladder Dysfunction,” by Xin Suand Dwight E. Nelson.

Bladder dysfunction generally refers to a condition of improperfunctioning of the bladder or urinary tract, and may include, forexample, an overactive bladder, urgency, or urinary incontinence.Overactive bladder is a patient condition that may include symptoms,such as urgency, with or without urinary incontinence. Urgency is asudden, compelling urge to urinate, and may often, though not always, beassociated with urinary incontinence. Urinary incontinence refers to acondition of involuntary loss of urine, and may include urgeincontinence, stress incontinence, or both stress and urge incontinence,which may be referred to as mixed urinary incontinence. As used in thisdisclosure, the term “urinary incontinence” includes disorders in whichurination occurs when not desired, such as stress or urge incontinence.

One type of therapy for treating bladder dysfunction includes deliveryof electrical stimulation to a target tissue site within a patient tocause an acute therapeutic effect during delivery of the electricalstimulation. For example, delivery of electrical stimulation from animplantable medical device (IMD) to a target therapy site, e.g., atissue site that delivers stimulation to modulate activity of a spinalnerve (e.g., a sacral nerve), a pudendal nerve, dorsal genital nerve, atibial nerve, an inferior rectal nerve, a perineal nerve, or branches ofany of the aforementioned nerves, may provide an immediate therapeuticeffect for bladder dysfunction, such as a desired reduction in frequencyof bladder contractions or increase in urinary sphincter contractions.In some examples, an acute therapeutic effect may be defined as atherapeutic effect that occurs within about 30 seconds or less (e.g.,about 10 seconds) of the patient receiving the stimulation (e.g., theinitiation of the stimulation). In some cases, electrical stimulation ofthe sacral nerve may modulate afferent nerve activities to restoreurinary function during the electrical stimulation. This type ofstimulation may be above a therapeutic intensity threshold, alsoreferred to as a therapeutic threshold, in that it may have an intensitysufficient to cause an acute therapeutic effect during delivery ofstimulation. In addition, the stimulation may be above a physiologicalintensity threshold, also referred to as a physiological threshold, inthat it may be sufficient to cause, during delivery of stimulation, anacute physiological response such as a motor response, patientperception response, a non-therapeutic effect, or a detectedphysiological effect such as a sensed nerve action potential. In someexamples, an acute response may be defined as a physiological responsethat occurs within about 30 seconds or less (e.g., about 10 seconds) ofthe patient receiving the stimulation (e.g., the initiation of thestimulation at the particular intensity level).

In contrast to this type of stimulation therapy, devices, systems, andtechniques described in this disclosure are directed to deliveringelectrical stimulation to induce a desired therapeutic effect in thepatient after terminating the delivery of electrical stimulation, i.e.,after the electrical stimulation to the patient is turned off. In somecases, the stimulation parameter values are selected such that thedesired therapeutic effect is observed within about 2 minutes to about10 minutes, such as about 2 minutes to about 5 minutes, of thetermination of the electrical stimulation to the patient. In someexamples, such techniques may involve delivery of electrical stimulationthat is below a therapeutic intensity threshold in that it isinsufficient to cause a desired therapeutic effect during delivery ofstimulation. However, the stimulation is sufficient to cause the desiredtherapeutic effect after the stimulation is terminated, i.e., as apost-stimulation therapeutic effect. In addition, in some examples, theelectrical stimulation may be below a physiological threshold. If thestimulation is below a physiological threshold, the stimulation isinsufficient to cause an acute physiological response during delivery ofthe stimulation. In other examples, the stimulation may be above thephysiological intensity threshold. In each case, the electricalstimulation may be delivered to the patient, and then selectivelyterminated, to induce a post-stimulation, desired therapeutic effect inthe patient after the electrical stimulation is terminated.

In some examples, the electrical stimulation that is below a therapeuticintensity threshold does not cause any significant therapeutic effectduring stimulation. In other examples, however, the electricalstimulation may cause some detectable therapeutic effect duringstimulation, but the therapeutic effect may be of a lesser magnitudethan the desired therapeutic effect produced after termination ofstimulation. This lesser therapeutic effect may be referred to as anancillary therapeutic effect as it is may be considered a side-effect orsecondary effect that occurs when targeting the desired therapeuticeffect that occurs after stimulation is terminated. As one example, ifthe desired therapeutic effect is a desired level of reduction inbladder contraction frequency, the stimulation may be insufficient toproduce the desired therapeutic effect during stimulation if it causesno therapeutic effect in reducing bladder contraction frequency or if itcauses a reduction in bladder contraction frequency that smaller thanthe desired level of reduction of bladder contraction frequency. In thisexample, the reduction in bladder contraction frequency may be greaterin the post stimulation period compared to the stimulation period, whenelectrical stimulation is being delivered to the patient.

The sufficiency of the stimulation in producing a desired therapeuticeffect may be a function of stimulation intensity and time for whichstimulation is delivered. Stimulation intensity may be, in turn, afunction of one or more parameters. In the case of stimulation pulses,stimulation intensity may be a function of current or voltage pulseamplitude, pulse rate, and pulse width. If the stimulation is deliveredin pulse bursts, the intensity may also be a function of a duty cycle ofthe bursts. By configuring stimulation to have an intensity that isinsufficient in intensity and/or time to cause the desired therapeuticeffect during stimulation, yet sufficient in intensity and/or time toyield the desired therapeutic response after stimulation is terminated,it may be possible to deliver stimulation with reduced powerconsumption, reduced patient adaptation, and/or reduced side effects.

The desired therapeutic effect is different from the acute physiologicalresponse. As one illustration, the desired therapeutic effect may be areduction in the frequency of bladder contractions in the patient,whereas the acute physiological response may be a motor response,patient perception response, a non-therapeutic effect, or a detectedphysiological effect such as a sensed nerve action potential. In someexamples, the desired therapeutic effect may be desired in the sensethat it may correspond to a desired degree of alleviation of bladderdysfunction versus no alleviation of the bladder dysfunction or a lesserdegree of alleviation of the bladder dysfunction during delivery ofelectrical stimulation. Hence, the electrical stimulation may beselected such that the stimulation is sufficient to induce the desiredtherapeutic effect only after the electrical stimulation is terminated.In some examples, an ancillary therapeutic effect may be caused duringstimulation, but to a degree less than the desired therapeutic effectproduced after stimulation is terminated.

In summary, stimulation delivered according to some techniques describedin this disclosure may be electrical stimulation insufficient to causethe desired therapeutic effect during stimulation, but sufficient tocause the desired therapeutic effect after stimulation is terminated. Insome examples, the stimulation also may be insufficient to cause anacute physiological response, but sufficient to cause a desiredtherapeutic effect after stimulation is terminated. Selection ofrelatively low intensity stimulation that is insufficient to cause thedesired therapeutic effect during stimulation may be desirable to reducepower consumption, patient adaptation, and/or undesirable side effectsassociated with higher intensity stimulation. Again, sufficiency of thestimulation may be a function of parameters such as the intensity anddelivery time of the stimulation. Other parameters may includeparticular pulse rates or pulse widths that may be observed to supportthe desired therapeutic effect, e.g., independently of the contributionsof pulse rate and pulse width to intensity. Accordingly, in some cases,it may be desired to adjust stimulation intensity by adjusting amplitude(e.g., current or voltage amplitude) while keeping pulse rate and/orpulse width in a range observed to be effective in supporting thetherapeutic effect. For example, assuming a sufficient intensity, thetherapeutic effect may be produced more effectively in some pulse rateor pulse width ranges than in other ranges.

It has been observed in animal studies that substantial therapeuticeffects may be induced after termination of electrical stimulation. Forexample, delivery of electrical stimulation has been observed to cause areduction in bladder contraction frequency, as shown in FIG. 9 anddescribed in further detail below, after stimulation is terminated. Inparticular, the rate of bladder contractions per unit time in animalsunder study has been observed to decrease after delivery of electricalstimulation is terminated. The delivered electrical stimulation may below intensity stimulation that is insufficient to cause a therapeuticeffect during the delivery of stimulation, but sufficient to induce asubstantial, desired therapeutic effect once the stimulation wasterminated. Accordingly, an IMD may be configured to generate electricalstimulation that induces a post-stimulation, desired therapeutic effectafter stimulation is terminated. In one example, the IMD may deliverstimulation that is also insufficient to cause an acute physiologicalresponse during delivery of the stimulation, as well aspost-stimulation, but still induces the desired therapeutic effectpost-stimulation.

The electrical stimulation may be delivered by a stimulation deliverymodule and controlled by a control module contained within an IMD. Thecontrol module may control when the electrical stimulation begins andwhen the electrical stimulation is terminated. In some examples, thecontrol module may selectively terminate the electrical stimulation uponthe detection of a therapy trigger event. In particular, the controlmodule may terminate the electrical stimulation in response to an eventthat triggers therapy. This therapy trigger event may include one ormore different mechanisms that the control module may use to terminatethe electrical stimulation. In one example, this therapy trigger eventmay be indicated by the expiration of a timer that defines the end of atime period, a particular time of day, or any other time-based event. Insome examples, the timer can have a duration that is based on, forexample, a micturition cycle of the patient. For example, the timer maybe set such that the IMD terminates stimulation delivery at a certainperiod of time following the occurrence of the last voiding event of thepatient. The period of time can be selected to be a time at which thebladder of the patient is expected to be at a particular fill level thatincreases the possibility of an involuntary voiding event or increasesthe patient's bladder contraction frequency, such that the therapeuticeffects are desirable to reduce the possibility of an involuntaryvoiding event and/or the patient's bladder contraction frequency. Inanother example, alternatively or additionally, the therapy triggerevent may be a request by the patient or other user for delivery oftherapy. Upon this request for therapy, the electrical stimulation isterminated. Hence, a user request for therapy causes the IMD toterminate the delivered electrical stimulation so that the therapy to beprovided. This is in contrast to an IMD that starts delivery ofelectrical stimulation in response to a user request for therapy.

In other examples, the control module may use one or more sensors todetect a physiological state of the patient and use the detectedphysiological state as a therapy trigger event. The physiological statemay be utilized as an alternative or in addition to other therapytrigger events, such as those described above. This physiological statemay be, for example, a bladder pressure, bladder contraction frequency,nerve activity, or any other physiological state indicative of bladderdysfunction. In each case, the sequence of events may be contrary toother types of stimulation therapy, where electrical stimulation isordinarily started or increased in intensity in response to a requestfor therapy. In accordance with examples of this disclosure, electricalstimulation is actually terminated, rather than started, in order toinduce the desired therapeutic effect.

In some examples, the control module may determine when to begindelivery of the electrical stimulation based on a desired therapywindow, i.e., a window of time during which the desired therapeuticeffect is to be provided. The therapy window may be a time period duringwhich the patient may benefit from the desired therapeutic effect, suchas a reduction in bladder contraction frequency. The target time and/ortarget duration of the desired therapy window may be calculated orestimated based on timing of prior incontinence episodes, a durationsince the last voiding, or changes in sensed physiological states of thepatient. The therapy trigger event may occur to specify the desiredtherapy window, such as the desired start and end times of the desiredtherapy window. In one example, a timer used as a therapy trigger eventmay be set such that the therapy window occurs at a predetermined time.

In some examples, instead of or in addition to the desired therapywindow, a physiological state may be set as the therapy trigger eventsuch that the desired therapy window may overlap with a physiologicalneed by the patient for therapy. In some cases, the electricalstimulation may need to be delivered for at least several minutes beforetermination can induce the desired post-stimulation therapeutic effect.For this reason, the control module may be configured to start theelectrical stimulation at a time that provides a sufficient amount oftime before the desired therapy window such that termination will becapable of inducing the post-stimulation therapeutic effect during thetherapy window. Alternatively, a patient may manually begin theelectrical stimulation in anticipation of needing the post-stimulationtherapeutic effect in a short time. In each case, the stimulation isdelivered for a sufficient period of time in advance of the desiredtherapy window to support the desired, post-stimulation therapeuticeffect.

The electrical stimulation may be targeted to manage bladderdysfunction, such as an overactive bladder, urgency, or urinaryincontinence. For example, the stimulation may be delivered to targettissue sites normally used to alleviate these types of dysfunction.However, the stimulation may be configured to have a stimulationintensity, delivery time, or other characteristics that are insufficientto cause a desired therapeutic effect during stimulation but sufficientto induce the desired therapeutic effect after stimulation isterminated. In some examples, the stimulation may also be below aphysiological threshold in the sense that the stimulation isinsufficient to cause an acute physiological response during delivery ofstimulation. Again, in some examples, the post-stimulation therapeuticeffect may correspond to a desired degree of alleviation of dysfunction,such as a desired reduction in bladder contraction frequency, versus noalleviation or a lesser degree of alleviation of the dysfunction.

The IMD may implement the techniques described in this disclosure todeliver stimulation therapy to at least one nerve (e.g., spinal nerve ora pelvic floor nerve) to modulate activity of the nerve via at least oneelectrode electrically connected to the IMD. The electrical stimulationmay induce a post-stimulation therapeutic effect, in some examples, inrelation to the contraction of a detrusor muscle in a patient, which maycause a decrease in frequency of bladder contractions. Reduction infrequency of bladder contractions may reduce urgency of voiding and mayreduce urgency and/or urinary incontinence, and thereby at leastpartially alleviate bladder dysfunction.

Although the techniques are primarily described in this disclosure formanaging bladder dysfunction, the techniques may also be applied tomanage other pelvic floor disorders or disorders relating to otherorgans, tissues or nerves of the patient. For example, the devices,systems, and techniques described in this disclosure alternatively oradditionally may be utilized to manage sexual dysfunction, pelvic pain,fecal urgency or fecal incontinence. In the example of fecalincontinence, the IMD may deliver the electrical stimulation therapyupon detecting a physiological state indicative of an increasedprobability of an occurrence of a fecal incontinence (e.g., an increasedpatient activity level) and terminate the stimulation when the desiredtherapeutic effect may be used by the patient. The physiological statemay include, for example, a magnitude of contraction of the analsphincter, a patient activity level or a patient posture state. The IMDmay use any suitable sensing mechanism to detect contraction of the analsphincter, such as a pressure sensor or an EMG sensor.

FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram illustrating an example therapy system 10that delivers electrical stimulation to patient 14 to elicit a responsefrom patient 14 that helps to manage bladder dysfunction, such asoveractive bladder, urgency, or urinary incontinence after terminationof the stimulation. As described above, system 10 may be configured todeliver electrical stimulation to the patient to induce a desiredtherapeutic effect in the patient only after the electrical stimulationis terminated. The electrical stimulation may be selected and deliveredsuch that a desired therapeutic effect is induced in the patient afterthe electrical stimulation is terminated and not during stimulation. Insome examples, the electrical stimulation may have an intensity that isbelow both a therapeutic threshold sufficient to produce the desiredtherapeutic effect during stimulation, and a physiological thresholdsufficient to produce a physiological response during stimulation.However, the electrical stimulation may still be sufficient to cause thedesired therapeutic effect after stimulation is terminated. In someexamples, the electrical stimulation may induce a reduction in bladdercontraction frequency that begins after termination of the electricalstimulation.

In the example of FIG. 1, therapy system 10 includes an implantablemedical device (IMD) 16, which is coupled to leads 18, 20, and 28 andsensor 22. System 10 also includes an external programmer 24, whichcommunicates with IMD 16 via wireless communication. IMD 16 generallyoperates as a therapy device that delivers electrical stimulation to,for example, a target tissue site proximate a spinal nerve, a sacralnerve, a pudendal nerve, dorsal genital nerve, a tibial nerve, aninferior rectal nerve, a perineal nerve, or other pelvic nerves, orbranches of any of the aforementioned nerves. IMD 16 provides electricalstimulation to patient 14 by generating and delivering a programmableelectrical stimulation signal (e.g., in the form of electrical pulses oran electrical waveform) to a target a therapy site near lead 28 and,more particularly, near electrodes 29A-29D (collectively referred to as“electrodes 29”) disposed proximate to a distal end of lead 28.

IMD 16 may be surgically implanted in patient 14 at any suitablelocation within patient 14, such as near the pelvis. In some examples,IMD 16 may be implanted in a subcutaneous location in the side of thelower abdomen or the side of the lower back or upper buttocks. IMD 16has a biocompatible housing, which may be formed from titanium,stainless steel, a liquid crystal polymer, or the like. The proximalends of leads 18, 20, and 28 are both electrically and mechanicallycoupled to IMD 16 either directly or indirectly, e.g., via respectivelead extensions. Electrical conductors disposed within the lead bodiesof leads 18, 20, and 28 electrically connect sense electrodes (e.g.,electrodes 19A, 19B, 21A, and 21B) and stimulation electrodes, such aselectrodes 29, to a sensing module and a stimulation delivery module(e.g., a stimulation generator) within IMD 16. In the example of FIG. 1,leads 18 and 20 carry electrodes 19A, 19B (collective referred to as“electrodes 19”) and electrodes 21A, 21B (collectively referred to as“electrodes 21”), respectively. As described in further detail below,electrodes 19 and 21 may be positioned for sensing an impedance ofbladder 12, which may increase as the volume of urine within bladder 12increases. In some examples, system 10 may include electrodes (such aselectrodes 19 and 21), a strain gauge, one or more accelerometers, orany other sensor capable of detecting contractions of bladder 12 or anyother indication of bladder dysfunction. In other examples, system 10may not include electrodes 19 and 21 for sensing bladder volume.

One or more medical leads, e.g., leads 18, 20, and 28, may be connectedto IMD 16 and surgically or percutaneously tunneled to place one or moreelectrodes carried by a distal end of the respective lead at a desirednerve or muscle site, e.g., one of the previously listed target therapysites such as a tissue site proximate a spinal (e.g., sacral) orpudendal nerve. For example, lead 28 may be positioned such thatelectrodes 29 deliver electrical stimulation to a spinal, sacral orpudendal nerve to reduce a frequency of contractions of bladder 12. Inaddition, lead 28 may also deliver a secondary stimulation therapy todifferent nerves (e.g., a hypogastric nerve, a pudendal nerve, a dorsalpenile/clitoral nerve, the urinary sphincter, or any combinationthereof) to induce a post-stimulation therapeutic effect such as closureof a urinary sphincter of patient 14. For example, the post-stimulationtherapeutic effect may reduce the frequency of bladder contractions,while the second stimulation therapy may promote sphincter closure toprevent urine leakage. Electrodes 29 of the common lead 28 may deliverstimulation to the same or different nerves. In FIG. 1, leads 18 and 20are placed proximate to an exterior surface of the wall of bladder 12 atfirst and second locations, respectively. In other examples of therapysystem 10, IMD 16 may be coupled to more than one lead that includeselectrodes for delivery of electrical stimulation to differentstimulation sites within patient 14, e.g., to target different nerves.

In the example shown in FIG. 1, leads 18, 20, 28 are cylindrical.Electrodes 19, 20, 29 of leads 18, 20, 28, respectively, may be ringelectrodes, segmented electrodes, partial ring electrodes or anysuitable electrode configuration. Segmented and partial ring electrodeseach extend along an arc less than 360 degrees (e.g., 90-120 degrees)around the outer perimeter of the respective lead 18, 20, 28. In someexamples, segmented electrodes 29 of lead 28 may be useful for targetingdifferent fibers of the same or different nerves to generate differentphysiological effects (e.g., therapeutic effects) after termination ofthe electrical stimulation. In examples, one or more of leads 18, 20, 28may be, at least in part, paddle-shaped (e.g., a “paddle” lead), and mayinclude an array of electrodes on a common surface, which may or may notbe substantially flat.

In some examples, one or more of electrodes 19, 20, 29 may be cuffelectrodes that are configured to extend at least partially around anerve (e.g., extend axially around an outer surface of a nerve).Delivering electrical stimulation via one or more cuff electrodes and/orsegmented electrodes may help achieve a more uniform electrical field oractivation field distribution relative to the nerve, which may helpminimize discomfort to patient 14 that results from the delivery ofelectrical stimulation. An electrical field may define the volume oftissue that is affected when the electrodes 19, 20, 29 are activated. Anactivation field represents the neurons that will be activated by theelectrical field in the neural tissue proximate to the activatedelectrodes.

The illustrated numbers and configurations of leads 18, 20, and 28 andelectrodes carried by leads 18, 20, and 28 are merely exemplary. Otherconfigurations, e.g., numbers and positions of leads and electrodes arealso contemplated. For example, in other implementations, IMD 16 may becoupled to additional leads or lead segments having one or moreelectrodes positioned at different locations proximate the spinal cordor in the pelvic region of patient 14. The additional leads may be usedfor delivering different stimulation therapies or other electricalstimulations to respective stimulation sites within patient 14 or formonitoring at least one physiological parameter of patient 14.

In accordance with some examples of the disclosure, IMD 16 deliverselectrical stimulation periodically over an extended period of time,e.g., chronic stimulation, to at least one of a spinal nerve (e.g., asacral nerve), a pudendal nerve, dorsal genital nerve, a tibial nerve,an inferior rectal nerve, or a perineal nerve to provide apost-stimulation therapeutic effect after termination of the electricalstimulation. The desired therapeutic effect may be an inhibitoryphysiological response related to voiding of patient 14, such as areduction in bladder contraction frequency by a desired level or degree(e.g., percentage). In particular, IMD 16 may deliver stimulation via atleast one of electrodes 29 according to a stimulation program for afirst time period sufficient to cause a post-stimulation, desiredtherapeutic effect during a second time period immediately following thefirst time period.

The stimulation program may define various parameters of the stimulationwaveform and electrode configuration which result in a predeterminedstimulation intensity being delivered to the targeted nerve. In someexamples, the stimulation program defines parameters for at least one ofa current or voltage amplitude of the stimulation signal, a frequency orpulse rate of the stimulation, the shape of the stimulation waveform, aduty cycle of the stimulation, a pulse width of the stimulation, and/orthe combination of electrodes 29 and respective polarities of the subsetof electrodes 29 used to deliver the stimulation. Together, thesestimulation parameter values may be used to define the stimulationintensity (also referred to herein as a stimulation intensity level). Insome examples, if stimulation pulses are delivered in bursts, a burstduty cycle also may contribute to stimulation intensity. Also,independent of intensity, a particular pulse width and/or pulse rate maybe selected from a range suitable for causing the desired therapeuticeffect after stimulation is terminated and, optionally, duringstimulation. In addition to the above stimulation parameters, thestimulation may be defined by other characteristics, such as a time forwhich stimulation is delivered, a time for which stimulation isterminated and the time during which the post-stimulation therapeuticeffect is produced, responsiveness of the stimulation to one or moretherapy trigger events to terminate stimulation and thereby induce thedesired therapeutic effect, or other characteristics.

The stimulation program may generally define stimulation selected toinduce the desired therapeutic effect after stimulation is terminatedbut not during stimulation. In some examples, the program may alsodefine stimulation with a stimulation intensity that is insufficient tocause an acute physiological response during stimulation, but is alsosufficient to cause the desired therapeutic effect after stimulation isterminated. The desired therapeutic effect may refer to a desired degreeof alleviation of bladder dysfunction. In some examples, it may benecessary for the stimulation to be delivered for at least a firstperiod of time. The first period of time may be selected to be at leasta minimum period of time sufficient to cause the post-stimulation,desired therapeutic effect during a second period of time immediatelyfollowing the first period of time, and not more than a maximum periodof time. The maximum period of time may be selected to be less than atime for which stimulation may cease to induce therapy upon termination.Alternatively, or additionally, the maximum period of time may beselected to be less than a period of time that may result in excessivepower consumption or patient adaptation. Hence, the first period of timemay be bounded by a minimum period of time necessary to cause thepost-stimulation desired therapeutic effect and a maximum period of timeassociated with loss of the post-stimulation effect or excessive powerconsumption or adaptation.

The post-stimulation therapeutic effect may be related to voiding bypatient 14. During this first period of time, in some examples, theelectrical stimulation may cause substantially no therapeutic effectrelated to voiding by patient 14 during the delivery of the electricalstimulation. In other words, the therapeutic effect of patient 14 inrelation to voiding during the first time period of the electricalstimulation may be substantially unchanged from the therapeutic effectof patient 14 prior to IMD 16 delivering any stimulation. In someexamples, the therapeutic effect may comprise a reduction in contractionfrequency of bladder 12. Accordingly, in some cases, a contractionfrequency of bladder 12 may be substantially the same prior to deliveryof the electrical stimulation and during the first time period duringwhich electrical stimulation is delivered. However, the contractionfrequency of bladder 12 may be reduced by a desired level afterstimulation is terminated, i.e., as a desired post-stimulationtherapeutic effect.

In other examples, the contraction frequency of bladder 12 may bereduced during the first time period compared to the contractionfrequency of bladder 12 prior to IMD 16 delivering stimulation topatient 14. However, the amount, or magnitude, of the reduction duringstimulation may be less than the amount of reduction desired for thetherapeutic effect that results after stimulation is terminated, duringthe second period of time. In other words, in some examples, theelectrical stimulation may cause no alleviation of dysfunction or someancillary amount of alleviation, but not a degree of alleviationrelative to that provided by the post-stimulation therapeutic effect.Hence, an ancillary therapeutic effect, or physiological response,arising during the electrical stimulation may not be a therapeuticeffect similar to the desired therapeutic effect resulting once theelectrical stimulation is terminated. In alternative examples, however,the stimulation may be selected to cause the desired therapeutic effectboth during stimulation and post-stimulation.

The desired therapeutic effect may be any therapeutic effect that isanticipated to reach a desired, target efficacy level. In other words,the target efficacy level may be an efficacy level that a clinician orthe patient wishes to reach after terminating the electricalstimulation. The target efficacy level may be determined based onpreviously detected therapeutic effect, a predetermined physiologicalstate, physiological response, or a subjective indication from thepatient. The target efficacy level of the desired therapeutic effect maybe a parameter value or it may be a percentage of a previouslyidentified value. For example, the target efficacy level of a reductionin bladder contraction frequency may be a 50 percent (%) reduction inthe pre-stimulation bladder contraction frequency (e.g., the baselinebladder contraction frequency without intervention).

Although the desired therapeutic effect may not reach the targetefficacy level, the target efficacy level may still be used to determinewhether the therapeutic effect during stimulation is only an ancillarytherapeutic effect. The ancillary therapeutic effect may besignificantly less than the target efficacy level. For example, anancillary therapeutic effect during the stimulation may be less than 20%of the target efficacy level. In an example where the target efficacylevel is approximately a 50% reduction in the pre-stimulationcontraction frequency, an ancillary therapeutic effect may be an effectthat results in not more than a 10% reduction in pre-stimulation bladdercontraction frequency (i.e., 20% of the target efficacy level of a 50%reduction). If the therapeutic effect is less than 20%, or some otherpredetermined percentage, of the target efficacy level of the desiredtherapeutic effect, then the therapeutic effect may not be considered tobe a desired therapeutic effect.

As described above, the desired therapeutic effect induced aftertermination of stimulation may be substantially greater than anyancillary therapeutic effect during the delivery of the stimulation.Although the desired therapeutic effect may approximate the targetefficacy level for post-stimulation therapy, the ancillary therapeuticeffect may generally be less than 10% to 50% of the target efficacylevel. In one example, the ancillary therapeutic effect may be less thanapproximately 20% of the target efficacy level. Therefore, any ancillarytherapeutic effect caused by the electrical stimulation may not be thedesired therapeutic effect for patient 14. Even though the electricalstimulation may cause a relatively insignificant ancillary therapeuticeffect during stimulation, in some examples, the simulation may notcause any significant therapeutic effects during stimulation.

After the electrical stimulation is delivered for a first period of timeand then terminated, a post-stimulation, desired therapeutic effect isinduced during a second time period that immediately follows the firstperiod of time. This desired therapeutic effect may be an inhibitoryphysiological response of patient 14 during the second time periodduring which no electrical stimulation is delivered to patient 14, suchas a reduction in bladder contraction frequency, as described above. Insome examples, the second time period may correspond to a lockout periodin which IMD 16 is prevented from delivering any further electricalstimulation to patient 14. In other examples, IMD 16 may deliver asecondary electrical stimulation to bladder 12 or another tissue site inpatient 14 during the second period of time without interfering with thepost-stimulation therapeutic effect induced by the termination of theelectrical stimulation delivered during the first period of time. Thesecondary electrical stimulation may or may not cause a secondarytherapeutic effect during the second period. In other words, even if notall electrical stimulation is terminated after the first period, or asecondary stimulation occurs during the second period, the desiredtherapeutic effect may still be induced after termination of theelectrical stimulation delivered during the first period of time.

In some examples, the first and second time periods may have durationson the order of minutes. For example, the first time period, duringwhich IMD 16 delivers electrical stimulation, may be at leastapproximately 5 minutes, and may be between approximately 5 minutes andapproximately 30 minutes. For example, the first time period may be atleast approximately 10 minutes, and may be between approximately 10minutes and approximately 20 minutes. Similarly, the second time period,after which IMD 16 has terminated the delivery of the electricalstimulation, may be at least approximately 5 minutes, and may be betweenapproximately 5 minutes and approximately 30 minutes. In each case, inaddition to the delivery time, the stimulation has an intensity levelsufficient to cause the desired therapeutic effect after stimulation isterminated, but insufficient to cause the desired therapeutic effectduring stimulation. The duration of the second period may be dependentupon the magnitude of the induced therapeutic effect. In some examples,the relative lengths of the first and second time periods may beselected to induce the desired therapeutic effect, balance the need ofpatient 14 for immediate therapeutic effects, and provide advantageousbattery life to IMD 16 compared to an IMD 16 that delivers stimulationtherapy substantially continuously.

Patient adaptation may generally refer to desensitization of the patientto the stimulation over time such the stimulation loses effect. Reducedstimulation intensity associated with delivery of electrical stimulationas described in this disclosure may reduce neuron habituation or otherforms of patient adaptation to the stimulation therapy and extend aneffective lifetime of the stimulation therapy (e.g., the time for whichthe stimulation therapy is efficacious in reducing bladder contractionfrequency). It has been found that a patient may adapt to stimulationdelivered by an IMD over time, such that a certain level of electricalstimulation provided to a tissue site in a patient may be less effectiveover time. As a result, beneficial effects of electrical stimulation maydecrease over time for a patient. Although the electrical stimulationlevels (e.g., amplitude of the electrical stimulation signal) may beincreased to overcome such adaptation, the increase in stimulationlevels may consume more power, and may eventually reach undesirablelevels of stimulation, causing discomfort and/or a greater degree oracceleration of adaptation.

Generally, the stimulation program with which IMD 16 generates anddelivers therapy to patient 14 may define a stimulation intensity. Thisstimulation intensity may be below a therapeutic intensity threshold,i.e., below a stimulation intensity that is sufficient to produce anacute therapeutic response (e.g., the desired therapeutic effect) duringstimulation. However, the stimulation intensity below the therapeuticintensity threshold may still be sufficient to induce a therapeuticeffect after termination of the stimulation. In some examples, thisstimulation that does not cause an acute therapeutic response duringstimulation (during the first period of time) may be above aphysiological threshold stimulation intensity that still causes a motorresponse, a stimulation perception response, a non-therapeutic response,or a detected physiological response such as a nerve action potential.

The stimulation intensity that is below the therapeutic intensitythreshold but still sufficient to induce a post-stimulation desiredtherapeutic effect may be determined experimentally for each patient. Inone example, a clinician may begin the determination of the therapeuticintensity threshold with a relatively low intensity that is not likelyto produce any acute physiologically significant response. Then, theclinician may incrementally increase one or more stimulation parameters,e.g., a current amplitude, pulse width, or pulse frequency, until anacute therapeutic response to the stimulation is detected. In oneexample, the clinician may select a pulse width and pulse frequencyknown to affect a specific tissue and incrementally increase theamplitude to increase stimulation intensity.

Once an acute therapeutic response is detected, such a particularpercentage of reduction of bladder contraction frequency, theseparameters may be used to define the therapeutic intensity threshold.From this determined therapeutic intensity threshold, the clinician mayreduce one or more stimulation parameters such that the selectedstimulation parameters produce an intensity that is below thetherapeutic intensity threshold and insufficient to cause a desiredtherapeutic effect during the delivery of stimulation. The clinician maycontinue to reduce the intensity below the therapeutic threshold as longas the resulting stimulation parameters are still sufficient to induce adesired post-stimulation therapeutic effect, e.g., as observed upondelivery of stimulation to the patient with the parameters and thentermination of the stimulation. In this manner, the clinician may selecta lower intensity stimulation sufficient to support the post-stimulationtherapeutic effect.

In other examples, the clinician may attempt to identify the loweststimulation intensity possible that still induces a desired therapeuticeffect after termination of the stimulation. However, as the stimulationintensity is lowered, the magnitude of the therapeutic effect observedafter stimulation termination may likewise be reduced. In this manner,the post-stimulation therapeutic effect may be a graded effect thatdiminishes with lower stimulation intensities. At some specific lowintensity, no post-stimulation therapeutic effect may be induced. Inthis manner, the clinician may experimentally determine the appropriatestimulation intensity that induces the desired therapeutic effect aftertermination.

In some examples, the stimulation intensity may also be set below aphysiological response threshold sufficient to produce an acutephysiological response during delivery of stimulation (during the firstperiod of time). Accordingly, this electrical stimulation may be belowthe therapeutic threshold and below the physiological threshold. Asmentioned above, the stimulation intensity may be a function of variousparameters. In the case of stimulation pulses, the parameters mayinclude a stimulation current or voltage pulse amplitude, pulse rate,pulse width, burst duty cycle, or other parameters.

A stimulation intensity below the physiological response threshold maybe defined to be below the level at which an acute, physiologicallysignificant response is first observed in patient 14 when increasing thestimulation intensity from a low intensity to a higher intensity. Forexample, the physiological threshold intensity may be defined asapproximately the lowest stimulation intensity that causes an acute,physiologically significant effect in patient 14. In some examples, thephysiological response may be different than the therapeutic response(e.g., an inhibitory physiological response) elicited by the delivery ofelectrical stimulation at the first stimulation intensity (or the secondstimulation intensity, which is described below). This acutephysiological response may be manifest in a number of differentexamples. For example, the acute physiological response may be a motorresponse, a stimulation perception response, or a detected physiologicalresponse such as a nerve action potential. These examples of an acuteresponse may be defined as a physiological response that occurs withinabout 30 seconds or less (e.g., about 10 seconds) of patient 14receiving the stimulation (e.g., the initiation of the stimulation atthe particular intensity level). A stimulation perception response maybe observed and reported by patient 14, e.g., as a paresthesia or othersensation. However, a motor response or a physiological response (e.g.,a nerve impulse or non-therapeutic effect) may be reported by patient14, observed by a clinician, or automatically detected by one or moresensors internal or external to patient 14. The acute, physiologicallysignificant response may or may not be perceived by the patient.

Like the therapeutic intensity threshold, the physiological responsethreshold may be determined experimentally for each patient in order todetermine parameters of the electrical stimulation. In one example, aclinician may begin the determination of the physiological thresholdstimulation intensity with a relatively low intensity level that is notlikely to produce any acute physiologically significant response. Thisrelative intensity level may be selected, for example, based on theclinician's knowledge or based on other guidelines. The clinician canselect the initial intensity by, for example, setting stimulationparameters (e.g., a current amplitude, a voltage amplitude, a frequencyor pulse rate, a shape, a pulse width, a duty cycle, and/or thecombination of electrodes) to produce a relatively low stimulationintensity and controlling IMD 16 to deliver stimulation to patient 14using these parameters. Then, the clinician may incrementally increaseone or more stimulation parameter values until an acute physiologicalresponse to the stimulation is detected. The stimulation parameter orparameters that are selected may be known to affect stimulationintensity and may include, for example, amplitude, pulse width and/orpulse rate. The process of modifying the stimulation parameter value anddelivering stimulation according at the respective stimulation intensitylevel may be repeated until a threshold physiological response isobserved (e.g., based on a signal generated by an implanted or externalsensor or patient input indicating a perception of a physiologicalevent). In this way, the process of finding the threshold intensitylevel may be an iterative procedure. Once an acute physiologicalresponse is detected, these parameters may be used to define thephysiological threshold stimulation intensity.

From this determined threshold stimulation intensity, the clinician mayreduce one or more stimulation parameters such that the selectedstimulation parameters produce electrical stimulation having anintensity less than the physiological threshold stimulation intensity.The clinician may reduce the intensity to any value as long as theresulting stimulation parameters are still sufficient to induce thepost-stimulation, desired therapeutic effect, e.g., as observed upondelivery of stimulation to the patient with the parameters and thentermination of the stimulation.

In some examples, whether a response is physiologically significant maybe defined by patient 14. As one example, the stimulation may causemovement of a toe of patient 14, and patient 14 may define the movementof the toe as physiologically significant when the movement of the toeis perceptible or when the movement of the toe is above some arbitraryamount defined by patient 14. In this manner, the physiologicalthreshold stimulation intensity may be similar to a motor threshold thatcauses nerve fiber firing or muscle fiber firing. When stimulating oneof the nerves described herein, such as a spinal nerve, sacral nerve,pudendal nerve, or the like, the physiological response may be acontraction of a toe of patient 14, a flexing of an anal sphincter ofpatient 14, or a detected signal on an electromyography (EMG). Otherphysiological responses may be detected when stimulating other nerves ofpatient 14.

In one example of determining the motor threshold, the physiologicalthreshold stimulation intensity may be determined by setting thestimulation frequency at about 10 Hz to about 14 Hz and increasing thecurrent amplitude until a muscle response is observed based on a sensorinput (e.g., electromyogram (EMG) indicating the muscle movement) orpatient input.

According to one example method, either the therapeutic intensitythreshold or the physiological threshold stimulation intensity may beused as a convenient reference for a clinician to set the stimulationintensity level. Having determined the therapeutic intensity thresholdor the physiological threshold stimulation intensity, the stimulationparameter values may be changed such that the electrical stimulationdefines an intensity that is between about 50% and just less than about100% of the selected threshold. This lower intensity may be used todeliver the electrical stimulation. In other examples, the stimulationintensity of the electrical stimulation may be less than about 50% ofthe selected threshold, or less than about 75% of the selectedthreshold. Any intensity below the selected threshold may be usedprovided the resulting electrical stimulation, upon delivery for asufficient period of time, is still able to induce a desired therapeuticeffect after the stimulation is terminated.

The stimulation intensity may be changed by adjusting at least one ofthe stimulation parameters described above, such as, for example, acurrent amplitude of the stimulation signal, a voltage amplitude of thestimulation signal, a frequency of the stimulation signal, a pulse rateof the stimulation signal, a pulse width of the stimulation signal, theshape of the stimulation signal, the duty cycle of the stimulationsignal, or the combination of electrodes 29. For example, the current orvoltage amplitude of the stimulation signal may be reduced to reduce anintensity of the stimulation. In particular, the stimulation may beselected to have an amplitude that is less than or equal to about 50%,or less than or equal to about 75%, or some other percentage, of anamplitude necessary to meet the therapeutic or physiological threshold,while pulse rate or pulse width are the same. In addition, oralternatively, the intensity may be selected based on percentages ofpulse width, or pulse rate, or a combination of pulse width, pulse rate,and/or amplitude relative to the corresponding values associated withthe therapeutic or physiological threshold. IMD 16 may generate anddeliver the stimulation signal as substantially continuous waveforms oras a series of pulses.

As described above, the stimulation intensity may be determined byidentifying parameter values associated with a therapeutic orphysiological threshold stimulation intensity, and then selecting one ormore parameter values of the stimulation such that the stimulationintensity is below one of the thresholds. In some examples, thestimulation intensity may be selected to be less than the therapeuticthreshold intensity but greater than the physiological thresholdintensity, or less than both the therapeutic threshold intensity and thephysiological threshold intensity. In either case, a clinician mayexperimentally determine, by manipulation of one or more parameters, theappropriate stimulation intensity level at which the desired therapeuticeffect does not occur during stimulation, but occurs after stimulation.

For example, after identifying an intensity level at which the desiredtherapeutic effect is no longer produced during stimulation, theclinician may continue to incrementally reduce the stimulation intensitylevel until the desired therapeutic effect is no longer producedpost-stimulation, and then select a stimulation intensity that is abovethe level necessary to cause the post-stimulation, desired therapeuticeffect. Alternatively, the clinician may incrementally increase theintensity level to identify a level sufficient to cause thepost-stimulation, desired therapeutic effect but insufficient to causethe desired therapeutic effect during stimulation. Lower intensitylevels may, in some examples, provide additional benefits in terms ofpower efficiency, patient adaptation, and reduced negative side effects.

In some examples, the first and second time periods pre- andpost-stimulation may also be defined experimentally for each individualpatient. For example, a clinician may deliver the determined electricalstimulation for a relatively short period of time, e.g., about fiveminutes, and then terminate the stimulation after the first period haselapsed. During the following second period, the clinician may observepatient 14 for the desired therapeutic effect. The clinician mayincrementally increase the duration of the first period and observe theresulting, post-stimulation therapeutic effect for each of the firsttime period durations. Based on the most effective therapeutic effect,or based on a balance of most effective therapeutic effect, and powerefficiency or patient adaptation considerations, the clinician mayselect the appropriate duration of the first time period. Althoughdifferent durations for the first and second time periods may beevaluated in a clinic, patient 14 may leave the clinic and evaluatedifferent durations and the resulting therapeutic effects usingprogrammer 24. Patient 14 may then return to the clinic so that the mosteffective parameters are programmed for subsequent therapy.

In some examples, IMD 16 may deliver the stimulation therapy in an openloop manner, in which the first time period in which stimulation isdelivered and the second time period in which stimulation is notdelivered alternate periodically to define a therapy cycle. In someexamples, each of the first time periods may be of substantially equal(e.g., equal) duration. Similarly, in some examples, each of the secondtime periods may be of substantially equal (e.g., equal) duration.However, the first time periods may be substantially equal (e.g., equal)or unequal to the second periods in other examples.

In other implementations, IMD 16 may deliver the electrical stimulationin a closed loop manner. For example, IMD 16 may sense contractions ofbladder 12 during a time period prior to delivery of the electricalstimulation to establish a baseline contraction frequency of bladder 12or the baseline contraction frequency may be stored in a memory of IMD16 or another device (e.g., programmer 24). IMD 16 may sensecontractions of bladder 12 via one or more sensing devices, such as, forexample, electrodes 19 or 21, or sensor 22. IMD 16 may detectcontractions of bladder 12 based on, for example, bladder impedance,bladder pressure, pudendal or sacral afferent nerve signals, a urinarysphincter EMG, or any combination thereof.

IMD 16 may utilize the sensed contractions of bladder 12 to determine abaseline contraction frequency of bladder 12, e.g., as a number ofcontractions of bladder 12 per unit time. The baseline contractionfrequency of bladder 12 may represent the patient state when notherapeutic effects from delivery of stimulation by IMD 16 are present.In some cases, however, patient 14 may also receive other types oftherapy for managing bladder dysfunction, such as a pharmaceuticalagent. The baseline contraction frequency of bladder 12 may representthe patient state when patient 14 is under the influence of thepharmaceutical agent.

After determining a baseline contraction frequency, IMD 16 may sense,e.g., via electrodes 19 or 21 or sensor 22, bladder contractions orphysiological parameters indicative of bladder contractions anddetermine a contraction frequency of bladder 12 during the second timeperiod based on the sensed information, after the first time periodduring which IMD 16 delivers electrical stimulation to patient 14. Insome examples, IMD 16 may determine a contraction frequency of bladder12 periodically throughout the second time period. During thismonitoring of the physiological state of bladder 12, IMD 16 may comparethe contraction frequency of bladder 12 during the second time period tothe baseline contraction frequency or a threshold frequency that isbased on the baseline contraction frequency.

The threshold frequency may be less than the baseline contractionfrequency. In some examples, when the bladder contraction frequencysensed during the second time period is within a certain amount belowthe baseline contraction frequency or is above the threshold frequency,IMD 16 may initiate delivery of the electrical stimulation, e.g., torestart the first time period. In other examples, the second period oftime may operate as a timer, similar to the first time period, such thatthe first and second time periods create a duty cycle. In this dutycycle, the end of the first time period may still be considered as atherapy trigger event.

Before IMD 16 may terminate the electrical stimulation to induce thepost-stimulation therapeutic effect in patient 14, IMD 16 may detect atherapy trigger event that triggers the termination of the electricalstimulation. In other words, the trigger event that terminatesstimulation occurs when therapy is to be delivered to patient 14, e.g.,a therapeutic effect of the electrical stimulation therapy is desired.In this way, the therapy trigger event provides a stopping point for thedelivered electrical stimulation. In the example of a duty cycle for thefirst and second time periods, the end of subsequent first time periodsmay also be considered to be a therapy trigger event. In this manner, atherapy trigger event may be a recurring time event within a therapycycle.

As described above, in some examples, a therapy trigger event forterminating the electrical stimulation may be detected based on anelapsed time period (e.g., an expiration of the first time period),input from patient 14 requesting a therapeutic effect, or detecting aphysiological state with sensor 22 or electrodes 19 and/or 21. Thetermination of the electrical stimulation may be initiated upon thedetection of any of these example therapy trigger events.

IMD 16 can detect a contraction of bladder 12 using any suitabletechnique, such as based on a sensed physiological parameter. Oneexample physiological parameter is an impedance of bladder 12. In theexample shown in FIG. 1, IMD 16 may determine impedance of bladder 12using a four-wire (or Kelvin) measurement technique. In other examples,IMD 16 may measure bladder impedance using a two-wire sensingarrangement. In either case, IMD 16 may transmit an electricalmeasurement signal, such as a current, through bladder 12 via leads 18and 20, and determine impedance of bladder 12 based on the transmittedelectrical signal. Such an impedance measurement may be utilized todetermine response of contractions of bladder 12 during the electricalstimulation or after termination of the electrical stimulation, todetermine a fullness of bladder 12, or the like. Although fullness maybe a physiological state indicative of the need for the desiredtherapeutic effect, fullness may also indicate that the frequency ofbladder contractions will increase to void bladder 12.

In the example four-wire arrangement shown in FIG. 1, electrodes 19A and21A and electrodes 19B and 21B, may be located substantially oppositeeach other relative to the center of bladder 12. For example electrodes19A and 21A may be placed on opposing sides of bladder 12, eitheranterior and posterior or left and right. In FIG. 1, electrodes 19 and21 are shown placed proximate to an exterior surface of the wall ofbladder 12. In some examples, electrodes 19 and 21 may be sutured orotherwise affixed to the bladder wall. In other examples, electrodes 19and 21 may be implanted within the bladder wall. To measure theimpedance of bladder 12, IMD 16 may source an electrical signal, such ascurrent, to electrode 19A via lead 18, while electrode 21A via lead 20sinks the electrical signal. IMD 16 may then determine the voltagebetween electrode 19B and electrode 21B via leads 18 and 20,respectively. IMD 16 determines the impedance of bladder 12 using aknown value of the electrical signal sourced the determined voltage.

In other examples, electrodes 19 and 21 may be used to detect an EMG ofthe detrusor muscle. This EMG may be used to determine the frequency ofbladder contractions and the physiological state of patient 14. The EMGmay also be used to detect the strength of the bladder contractions insome examples. As an alternative, or in addition, to an EMG, a straingauge or other device may be used to detect the status of bladder 12,e.g., by sensing forces indicative of bladder contractions.

In the example of FIG. 1, IMD 16 also includes a sensor 22 for detectingchanges in the contraction of bladder 12. Sensor 22 may include, forexample, a pressure sensor for detecting changes in bladder pressure,electrodes for sensing pudendal or sacral afferent nerve signals,electrodes for sensing urinary sphincter EMG signals (or anal sphincterEMG signals in examples in which system 10 provides therapy to managefecal urgency or fecal incontinence), or any combination thereof. Inexamples in which sensor 22 is a pressure sensor, the pressure sensormay be a remote sensor that wirelessly transmits signals to IMD 16 ormay be carried on one of leads 18, 20, or 28 or an additional leadcoupled to IMD 16. In some examples, IMD 16 may determine whether acontraction frequency of bladder 12 has occurred based on a pressuresignal generated by sensor 22.

In examples in which sensor 22 includes one or more electrodes forsensing afferent nerve signals, the sense electrodes may be carried onone of leads 18, 20, or 28 or an additional lead coupled to IMD 16. Inexamples in which sensor 22 includes one or more sense electrodes forgenerating a urinary sphincter EMC the sense electrodes may be carriedon one of leads 18, 20, or 28 or additional leads coupled to IMD 16. Inany case, in some examples, IMD 16 may control the timing of thedelivery of the sub-threshold electrical stimulation based on inputreceived from sensor 22.

Sensor 22 may comprise a patient motion sensor that generates a signalindicative of patient activity level or posture state. In some examples,IMD 16 may terminate the delivery of the electrical stimulation topatient 14 upon detecting a patient activity level exceeding aparticular threshold based on the signal from the motion sensor. Thepatient activity level that is greater than or equal to a threshold(which may be stored in a memory of IMD 16) may indicate that there isan increase in the probability that an involuntary voiding event willoccur, and, therefore, the therapeutic effects induced from theelectrical stimulation may be desirable. In other examples, IMD 16 mayuse sensor 22 to identify posture states known to require the desiredtherapeutic effect. For example, patient 14 may be more prone to aninvoluntary voiding event when patient 14 is in an upright posture statecompared to a lying down posture state.

In this manner, IMD 16 may control the delivery of the electricalstimulation by beginning the electrical stimulation once a particularactivity level or posture state is detected such that the electricalstimulation may be delivered for a sufficient period of time beforetermination needed to induce the post-stimulation therapeutic effect.Conversely, if the electrical stimulation has already begun, IMD 16 maycontrol the termination of the electrical stimulation to subsequentlyinduce a post-stimulation therapeutic effect necessitated by theactivity level or posture state of patient 14. In this way, theelectrical stimulation provided by IMD 16 may be useful for reacting tothe circumstances that may affect bladder dysfunction and plan ahead toprovide therapy in response to these circumstances. In other examples,IMD 16 may deliver electrical stimulation for relatively long periods oftime or continuously such that IMD 16 may be ready to terminate thestimulation at any time the therapeutic effect is needed, e.g., upon thedetection of a trigger event.

In some examples, IMD 16 may anticipate or determine a desired therapywindow for the post-stimulation therapeutic effect induced aftertermination of the electrical stimulation. The desired therapy windowcan define, for example, the duration of time the therapeutic effects ofthe electrical stimulation are observed (e.g., objectively, based on asensed physiological signal) and/or perceived by patient 14. IMD 16 mayutilize past rates of change in detected physiological states, e.g.,bladder pressure, bladder contraction frequency, times of day in whichpatient 14 has requested therapy, or any other prior data related to thetreatment of patient 14, to determine the duration and timing of thedesired therapy window. Determining the desired therapy window may beuseful because the electrical stimulation may need to be provided forseveral minutes or longer before termination of the stimulation willinduce a post-stimulation, desired therapeutic effect. Accordingly, IMD16 may begin the delivery of the electrical stimulation such that thefirst time period of electrical stimulation deliver expires prior to thetherapy window and at a time that induces the therapeutic effect at theappropriate time to start the therapy window. For example, the therapywindow may be a time of day that is associated with observed or detectedphysiological states. In addition, a clinician may program IMD 16 to setthe therapy window based on daily patient activities.

In some examples, IMD 16 may also monitor one or more physiologicalstates after termination of the electrical stimulation and update thestimulation parameters to maximize efficacy of the therapeutic effect.IMD 16 may adjust one or more stimulation parameters or select a newstimulation program based on the post-stimulation physiological states.For example, IMD 16 may determine that the desired therapeutic effect isnot reaching the target efficacy level. IMD 16 may then change a voltageor current amplitude, pulse frequency, pulse width, electrodecombination, or other stimulation parameter value in an attempt tomaximize or at least increase the therapeutic effect for patient 14.

System 10 may also include an external programmer 24, as shown inFIG. 1. Programmer 24 may be a clinician programmer or patientprogrammer. In some examples, programmer 24 may be a wearablecommunication device, with a therapy request input integrated into a keyfob or a wrist watch, handheld computing device, computer workstation,or networked computing device. Programmer 24 may include a userinterface that is configured to receive input from a user (e.g., patient14, a patient caretaker or a clinician). In some examples, the userinterface includes, for example, a keypad and a display, which may forexample, be a cathode ray tube (CRT) display, a liquid crystal display(LCD) or light emitting diode (LED) display. The keypad may take theform of an alphanumeric keypad or a reduced set of keys associated withparticular functions. Programmer 24 can additionally or alternativelyinclude a peripheral pointing device, such as a mouse, via which a usermay interact with the user interface. In some examples, a display ofprogrammer 24 may include a touch screen display, and a user mayinteract with programmer 24 via the display. It should be noted that theuser may also interact with programmer 24 and/or ICD 16 remotely via anetworked computing device.

A user, such as a physician, technician, surgeon, electrophysiologist,or other clinician, may also interact with programmer 24 or anotherseparate programmer (not shown), such as a clinician programmer, tocommunicate with IMD 16. Such a user may interact with a programmer toretrieve physiological or diagnostic information from IMD 16. The usermay also interact with a programmer to program IMD 16, e.g., selectvalues for the stimulation parameter values with which IMD 16 generatesand delivers stimulation and/or the other operational parameters of IMD16, such as the duration of the first period of stimulation and thesecond period during which stimulation is not delivered.

For example, the user may use a programmer to retrieve information fromIMD 16 regarding the contraction frequency of bladder 12 and/or voidingevents. As another example, the user may use a programmer to retrieveinformation from IMD 16 regarding the performance or integrity of IMD 16or other components of system 10, such as leads 18, 20, and 28, or apower source of IMD 16. In some examples, this information may bepresented to the user as an alert if a system condition that may affectthe efficacy of therapy is detected.

In some examples, patient 14 may interact with programmer 24 to controlIMD 16 to deliver the electrical stimulation, e.g., to begin thestimulation in anticipation of a need for the post-stimulationtherapeutic effects or terminate the simulation when the therapy isdesired. Patient 14 may, for example, use a keypad or touch screen ofprogrammer 24 to cause IMD 16 to deliver or terminate the electricalstimulation, such as when patient 14 senses that a leaking episode maybe imminent. In this way, patient 14 may use programmer 24 to provide atherapy request to control the delivery of the electrical stimulation“on demand,” e.g., when patient 14 deems the second stimulation therapydesirable. This request may be a therapy trigger event used to terminateelectrical stimulation.

Accordingly, if electrical stimulation is being delivered at the time atherapy request is received, and stimulation has been delivered for asufficient period of time to produce the post-stimulation, desiredtherapeutic effect, the stimulation may be terminated to deliver thepost-stimulation therapeutic effect. It has been observed that it may benecessary to deliver electrical stimulation for at least some sufficientperiod of time in order for the desired therapeutic effect to beproduced upon termination of stimulation. Therefore, if the electricalstimulation has not already been started, or has run for an insufficientperiod of time, a request for therapy may not be immediately on demand.Instead, patient 14 may need to wait for the electrical stimulation tobe delivered for the first time period before termination of thestimulation can start the therapy by way of the post-stimulationtherapeutic effect.

Programmer 24 may provide a notification to patient 14 when theelectrical stimulation is being delivered or notify patient 14 of theprospective termination of the electrical stimulation. Because theelectrical stimulation, in some examples, may be selected to beinsufficient to produce the desired therapeutic effect when stimulationis being delivered to patient 14 (e.g., during the first period oftime), e.g., insufficient to reduce frequency of bladder contractions bya desired amount, patent 14 may not be able to detect that stimulationis being delivered. In addition, notification of termination may behelpful so that patient 14 knows the desired therapeutic effect shouldbe induced in the near term after termination, e.g., that thetherapeutic effect is “armed” or in the processor of “arming” viadelivery of the electrical stimulation for a first period of timesufficient to produce the post-stimulation therapeutic effect.

In such examples, programmer 24 may display a visible message, emit anaudible alert signal or provide a somatosensory alert (e.g., by causinga housing of programmer 24 to vibrate). In other examples, thenotification may indicate when therapy is available (e.g., a countdownin minutes, or indication that therapy is ready) such that immediatetermination would induce the desired therapeutic effect. In this manner,programmer 24 may wait for input from patient 14 prior to terminatingthe electrical stimulation. Patient 14 may enter input that eitherconfirms termination of the electrical stimulation so that thepost-stimulation therapeutic effect is delivered or withholdstermination until patient 14 needs the therapy.

In the event that no input is received within a particular range oftime, programmer 24 may wirelessly transmit a signal that indicates theabsence of patient input to IMD 16. IMD 16 may then elect to terminatestimulation or continue stimulation until the patient input is receivedbased on the programming of IMD 16. As described herein, the terminationor continuation of electrical stimulation may be responsive to othertherapy trigger events.

IMD 16 and programmer 24 may communicate via wireless communicationusing any techniques known in the art. Examples of communicationtechniques may include, for example, low frequency or radiofrequency(RF) telemetry, but other techniques are also contemplated. In someexamples, programmer 24 may include a programming head that may beplaced proximate to the patient's body near the IMD 16 implant site inorder to improve the quality or security of communication between IMD 16and programmer 24.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating example components of IMD 16. Inthe example of FIG. 2, IMD 16 includes sensor 22, control module 50,stimulation delivery module 52, impedance module 54, memory 56,telemetry module 58, and power source 60. In other examples, IMD 16 mayinclude a greater or fewer number of components. For example, in someexamples, such as examples in which IMD 16 deliver the electricalstimulation in an open-loop manner, IMD 16 may not include sensor 22and/or impedance module 54.

In general, IMD 16 may comprise any suitable arrangement of hardware,alone or in combination with software and/or firmware, to perform thetechniques attributed to IMD 16 and control module 50, stimulationdelivery module 52, impedance module 54, and telemetry module 58 of IMD16. In various examples, IMD 16 may include one or more processors, suchas one or more microprocessors, digital signal processors (DSPs),application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), field programmablegate arrays (FPGAs), or any other equivalent integrated or discretelogic circuitry, as well as any combinations of such components. IMD 16also, in various examples, may include a memory 56, such as randomaccess memory (RAM), read only memory (ROM), programmable read onlymemory (PROM), erasable programmable read only memory (EPROM),electronically erasable programmable read only memory (EEPROM), flashmemory, comprising executable instructions for causing the one or moreprocessors to perform the actions attributed to them. Moreover, althoughcontrol module 50, stimulation delivery module 52, impedance module 54,and telemetry module 58 are described as separate modules, in someexamples, control module 50, stimulation delivery module 52, impedancemodule 54, and telemetry module 58 are functionally integrated. In someexamples, control module 50, stimulation delivery module 52, impedancemodule 54, and telemetry module 58 correspond to individual hardwareunits, such as ASICs, DSPs, FPGAs, or other hardware units.

Memory 56 stores stimulation programs 66 that specify stimulationparameter values for the electrical stimulation provided by IMD 16. Insome examples, memory 56 also stores bladder data 69, which controlmodule 50 may use for controlling the timing of the delivery of theelectrical stimulation (e.g., beginning and termination of thesub-threshold electrical stimulation). For example, bladder data 69 mayinclude threshold values or baseline values for at least one of bladderimpedance, bladder pressure, sacral or pudendal afferent nerve signals,bladder contraction frequency, or external urinary sphincter EMGtemplates. As described in further detail below, the threshold valuesand baseline values may indicate a particular physiological state, suchas a particular bladder contraction frequency level or a conditionindicative of a voiding-related physiological condition (e.g., a patientstate in which there is a relatively high likelihood of an involuntaryvoiding event) usable as a therapy trigger event.

Memory 56 may also store instructions for execution by control module50, in addition to stimulation programs 66 and bladder data 69.Information related to sensed bladder contractions, bladder impedanceand/or posture of patient 14 may be recorded for long-term storage andretrieval by a user, and/or used by control module 50 for adjustment ofstimulation parameters (e.g., amplitude, pulse width, and pulse rate) orfor use as a therapy trigger event. In some examples, memory 56 includesseparate memories for storing instructions, electrical signalinformation, stimulation programs 66, and bladder data 69. In otherexamples, control module 50 select new stimulation parameters for astimulation program 66 or new stimulation program from stimulationprograms 66 to use in the delivery of the electrical stimulation basedon patient input and/or monitored physiological states after terminationof the electrical stimulation.

Generally, stimulation delivery module 52 generates and deliverselectrical stimulation under the control of control module 50. As usedherein, controlling the delivery of electrical stimulation may alsoinclude controlling the termination of such stimulation to elicit thepost-stimulation, desired therapeutic effect from patient 14. In someexamples, control module 50 controls stimulation delivery module 52 byaccessing memory 56 to selectively access and load at least one ofstimulation programs 66 to stimulation delivery module 52. For example,in operation, control module 50 may access memory 56 to load one ofstimulation programs 66 to stimulation delivery module 52.

By way of example, control module 50 may access memory 56 to load one ofstimulation programs 66 to stimulation delivery module 52 for deliveringthe electrical stimulation to patient 14. A clinician or patient 14 mayselect a particular one of stimulation programs 66 from a list using aprogramming device, such as programmer 24 or a clinician programmer.Control module 50 may receive the selection via telemetry module 58.Stimulation delivery module 52 delivers the electrical stimulation topatient 14 according to the selected program for an extended period oftime, such as minutes, hours, days, weeks, or until patient 14 or aclinician manually stops or changes the program.

During the time of delivery with the program, the electrical stimulationmay not be delivered the entire time. Instead, delivery with a programgenerally indicates that the program may control when stimulation isdelivered as well as when stimulation is terminated or withheld frompatient 14. In some examples, the respective stimulation programs 66 maydefine a schedule of first time periods (“on” periods) and second timeperiods (“off” periods), such that a stimulation signal is notcontinuously delivered to patient 14, but periodically delivered inaccordance with predetermined parameters for the electrical stimulation.The second time periods without stimulation may include those periodsthat start with the termination of the electrical stimulation to inducea post-stimulation, desired therapeutic effect. In other examples,control module 50 may determine the timing with which IMD 16 deliversstimulation to patient 14 according to different programs based onsensor input or patient input.

Stimulation delivery module 52 delivers electrical stimulation accordingto stimulation parameters. In some examples, stimulation delivery module52 delivers electrical stimulation in the form of electrical pulses. Insuch examples, relevant stimulation parameters may include a voltageamplitude, a current amplitude, a pulse rate, a pulse width, a dutycycle, or the combination of electrodes 29 that stimulation deliverymodule 52 uses to deliver the stimulation signal. In other examples,stimulation delivery module 52 delivers electrical stimulation in theform of continuous waveforms. In such examples, relevant stimulationparameters may include a voltage or current amplitude, a frequency, ashape of the stimulation signal, a duty cycle of the stimulation signal,or the combination of electrodes 29 stimulation delivery module 52 usesto deliver the stimulation signal.

In some examples, the stimulation parameters for the stimulationprograms 66 may be selected to relax bladder 12, e.g., to reduce afrequency of contractions of bladder 12, after termination of theelectrical stimulation. An example range of stimulation parameters forthe electrical stimulation that are likely to be effective in treatingbladder dysfunction, e.g., upon application to the spinal, sacral,pudendal, tibial, dorsal genital, inferior rectal, or perineal nerves,are as follows:

1. Frequency or pulse rate: between about 0.5 Hz and about 500 Hz, suchas between about 1 Hz and about 250 Hz, between about 1 Hz and about 20Hz, or about 10 Hz.

2. Amplitude: between about 0.1 volts and about 50 volts, such asbetween about 0.5 volts and about 20 volts, or between about 1 volt andabout 10 volts. Alternatively, the amplitude may be between about 0.1milliamps (mA) and about 50 mA, such as between about 0.5 mA and about20 mA, or between about 1 mA and about 10 mA.

3. Pulse Width: between about 10 microseconds (μs) and about 5000 μs,such as between about 100 μs and about 1000 μs, or between about 100 μsand about 200 μs.

Although a variety of intensities may be effective in inducing apost-stimulation therapeutic effect, electrical stimulation with areduced intensity may be desired and beneficial to patient 14 in someexamples. This lower intensity may reduce physiological responses duringdelivery of the stimulation, reduce undesirable side effects, reduce theseverity of adaptation to the stimulation, and reduce power consumptionby IMD 16. A lower stimulation intensity may result from a loweramplitude, pulse width, and/or pulse rate.

In one example, the electrical stimulation may be delivered withparticular stimulation parameters to elicit the desired post stimulationtherapeutic effect. The stimulation may include a pulse frequencybetween approximately 0.1 Hz to 50 Hz, such as between approximately 1.0Hz and 20 Hz. The stimulation may have a pulse width betweenapproximately 50 and 500 microseconds, such as between approximately 100and 200 microseconds. The electrical stimulation may also have anamplitude selected such that the stimulation is below the therapeuticintensity threshold causing no desired therapeutic effect duringstimulation but inducing the desired therapeutic effect aftertermination of the stimulation. In other examples, the sub-thresholdelectrical stimulation may have an amplitude selected such that thesub-threshold electrical stimulation is below the physiologicalthreshold stimulation intensity for the patient (e.g., the motor orsensory thresholds). For example, the voltage amplitude may be selectedfrom a range between approximately 0.1 and 10 volts, such as less thanapproximately 5 volts. Accordingly, in another example, the currentamplitude may be selected from a range between approximately 0.1 and 10mA, or such as less than approximately 5 mA. Because lower stimulationintensities that still induce a desired post-stimulation therapeuticeffect may be used, either the voltage or current amplitude may be atlower values that approach a zero value in some examples. Any electricalstimulation may be delivered with continuous pulses or signals or burstsof pulses.

Additionally, the stimulation parameters of stimulation programs 66 mayinclude a duration of the first time period during which stimulation isdelivered and a duration of the second time period during whichstimulation is not delivered and the post-stimulation, desired therapyeffect is delivered. In some examples, the duration of the first timeperiod is at least five minutes, such as between about five minutes andabout 30 minutes, between approximately 10 minutes and 20 minutes, orabout 15 minutes. Hence, in some examples, stimulation delivery module52 delivers electrical stimulation to patient 14 via electrodes 29 for aduration of at least five minutes, such as between about five minutesand about 30 minutes, between approximately 10 minutes and 20 minutes,or about 15 minutes.

In some examples the duration of the second period, during whichstimulation delivery module 52 does not deliver the electricalstimulation to patient 14, is at least five minutes, such as betweenfive minutes and about 30 minutes or between about 10 minutes and about20 minutes. In other examples, the second period may be longer toaccommodate prolonged therapeutic effects after the termination of theelectrical stimulation.

In addition, a lockout period may encompass at least a portion of thesecond period. The lockout period may prevent stimulation deliverymodule 52 from delivering any stimulation to patient 14 during thelockout period. In this manner, the lockout period may prevent patient14 from requesting another round (e.g., another first period of time) ofelectrical stimulation that may interfere with the inducedpost-stimulation therapeutic effect of the second period. Generally, thelockout period may begin immediately upon the termination of theelectrical stimulation. The lockout period may be adjusted by a user,e.g., a clinician or technician, or IMD 16 to match various durations ofthe induced post-stimulation therapeutic effect.

In some examples, the stimulation parameter values are selected fromamong those listed above such that the electrical stimulation induces aphysiological response related to voiding of patient 14 during thesecond time period after termination of the electrical stimulation,i.e., the post-stimulation therapeutic effect. In some examples, thestimulation parameters are selected such that the electrical stimulationcauses substantially no inhibitory physiological response related tovoiding of patient 14 during the first time period, or an inhibitoryphysiological response that is less than the desired physiologicalresponse associated with the post-stimulation therapeutic effect. Again,an example of an inhibitory physiological response may be a reduction inbladder contraction frequency after termination of the electricalstimulation. In some examples, the physiological response of patient 14may be substantially similar during the first time period and during atime period prior to the first time period during which stimulationdelivery module 52 delivers electrical stimulation to patient 14.

In some examples, at least some of stimulation programs 66 may define astimulation intensity that is less than a physiological thresholdstimulation intensity, e.g., a sub-threshold stimulation ineffective toproduce an acute physiological response. The physiological thresholdstimulation intensity may be defined as the stimulation intensity atwhich an physiological response of patient 14 is first observed whenincreasing the stimulation intensity from a relatively low intensity toa higher intensity, e.g., by manipulation of one or more parameters thancontribute to intensity, such as amplitude, pulse rate, or pulse width.Stated another way, the physiological threshold stimulation intensitymay be defined as approximately the lowest stimulation intensity thatcauses an acute, physiological significant, response of patient 14. Insome examples, an acute response may be defined as a physiologicalresponse that occurs within about 30 seconds of patient 14 receiving thestimulation. In some examples, whether a response is physiologicallysignificant may be defined by patient 14. As described above, the acuteresponse may be a motor response, perceived response, or detectedphysiological response. In one example, the stimulation may cause amotor response in the form of movement of a toe of patient 14, andpatient 14 may define the movement of the toe as physiologicallysignificant when the movement of the toe is perceptible or when themovement of the toe is above some arbitrary amount defined by patient14.

In some implementations, control module 50 may determine thephysiological threshold stimulation intensity by setting stimulationparameters (e.g., a current amplitude, a voltage amplitude, a frequencyor pulse rate, a pulse width, a shape, a duty cycle, and/or thecombination of electrodes 29) to produce a relatively low stimulationintensity and controlling stimulation delivery module 52 to deliverstimulation to patient 14 via electrodes 29 using these stimulationparameter values. If no acute physiological response is detected duringthe stimulation, control module 50 may change one or more stimulationparameters automatically or in response to an input received from a uservia programmer 24 and telemetry module 58, while the remainingparameters are kept approximately constant, and control module 50 mayagain control stimulation delivery module 52 to deliver stimulation atthe new stimulation intensity. This may be repeated until an acutephysiological response is detected or observed. Although only oneparameter may be adjusted to achieve the threshold stimulationintensity, other parameters may be adjusted as well in other examples.When stimulating one of the nerves described herein, such as a spinalnerve, sacral nerve, pudendal nerve, or the like, the observed ordetected physiological response may be a contraction of a toe of patient14, a flexing of an anal sphincter of patient 14, or a detected signalon an electromyogram (EMG). The physiological response may be observedby patient 14 or a clinician or may be detected by sensor 22 orelectrodes 19, 21 coupled to IMD 16. Other physiological responses maybe detected when stimulating other nerves of patient 14.

In some examples, once the physiological threshold stimulation intensityfor producing an acute physiological response from patient 14 isdetermined, control module 50 may define a stimulation program,automatically or in response to an input received from a clinician viaprogrammer 24 and telemetry module 58. The stimulation program may bestored as one of stimulation programs 66 in memory 56. In some examples,the stimulation program may include stimulation parameters that define astimulation intensity that is between about 50% and about 100% of thephysiological threshold stimulation intensity. In other examples, thestimulation program may include stimulation parameters that define astimulation intensity that is less than or equal to about 50% of thephysiological threshold stimulation intensity. In some implementations,the stimulation program may include stimulation parameters that define astimulation intensity that is less than or equal to about 75% of thephysiological threshold intensity.

In each case, the stimulation intensity is selected to be sufficient tocause the desired therapeutic effect after stimulation is terminated,but, in some examples, not during delivery of stimulation to patient 14.For example, the stimulation may be selected to have an amplitude thatis less than or equal to about 50%, or less than or equal to about 75%of an amplitude necessary to meet the physiological threshold, whilepulse rate or pulse width are the same. In addition, or alternatively,the intensity may be selected based on percentages of pulse width, orpulse rate, or a combination of pulse width, pulse rate, and/oramplitude relative to the corresponding values associated with thephysiological threshold. However, in some examples, stimulationintensity may be adjusted by adjusting amplitude only while keepingpulse rate and/or pulse width in a range observed to be effective insupporting the therapeutic effect.

In examples of electrical stimulation configured to induce a desiredtherapeutic response after stimulation, but no desired therapeuticresponse during stimulation, a similar method may be used to determinethe stimulation intensity delivered to patient 14 based on thetherapeutic intensity threshold. As described above, the therapeuticintensity threshold may be used to determine the intensity at which anacute therapeutic response is observed in patient 14. Then, thestimulation intensity may be set to some lower intensity that stillinduces the desired therapeutic effect after termination of thestimulation. In this manner, the stimulation program may includestimulation parameters that define a stimulation intensity that isbetween about 50% and about 100% of the therapeutic intensity threshold.In other examples, the stimulation program may include stimulationparameters that define a stimulation intensity that is less than 50% ofthe therapeutic intensity threshold. In some implementations, thestimulation program may include stimulation parameters that define astimulation intensity that is about 75% of the therapeutic intensitythreshold. Hence, the therapeutic threshold or physiological thresholdmay be determined, and then a lower intensity stimulation level may beselected as a percentage of a selected one of the thresholds, e.g.,based on a percentage of the amplitude associated with the selectedthreshold, or one or more of amplitude, pulse width or pulse rate. Asmentioned above, in some examples, the electrical stimulation parametervalues are selected based on the selected threshold such that thestimulation induces a desired therapeutic effect in patient 14 after theelectrical stimulation is terminated (e.g., when no stimulation is beingdelivered to patient 14) and not during stimulation. In other examples,the electrical stimulation may be an electrical stimulation below thetherapeutic threshold that does not provide, or is insufficient tocause, an acute physiological response in the patient during thedelivery of the stimulation. However, the sub-threshold electricalstimulation may still be sufficient to cause the desired therapeuticeffect after stimulation is terminated.

Rather than setting the intensity level based on a percentage of thetherapeutic intensity threshold or the physiological intensitythreshold, as described above, in some examples, a clinician may seek anintensity level based on a maximum level at which the stimulation doesnot produce the desired therapeutic effect during stimulation and aminimum level for which the stimulation causes the desired therapeuticeffect after stimulation is terminated. In some examples, the maximumintensity level may be determined experimentally by increasing theintensity level during stimulation until the desired therapeutic effectis perceived. In addition, in some examples, the minimum intensity maythen be determined through one or more iterations of lowering theintensity level from the maximum level until the desired therapeuticeffect no longer occurs after termination of the stimulation. In otherwords, the minimum level may the lowest intensity level at which thedesired therapeutic effect still occurs after stimulation is terminated.In other cases, a clinician may find it desirable to select astimulation level sufficient to provide no more than an ancillarytherapeutic effect during stimulation while also producing the greaterdesired therapeutic effect after stimulation.

The stimulation intensity may be changed from the therapeutic intensitythreshold by adjusting a value of at least one of the stimulationparameters described above, such as, for example, a current amplitude, avoltage amplitude, a frequency or pulse rate, a pulse width, a burstduty cycle, a pulse duty cycle, a signal shape, a signal duty cycle, orthe combination and polarities of electrodes 29. For example, thecurrent or voltage amplitude of the stimulation signal may be reduced toreduce an intensity of the stimulation signal.

In some examples, at least some of stimulation programs 66 may definevalues for a set of stimulation parameters, including the durations ofthe first and second time periods, which cause stimulation deliverymodule 52 to deliver stimulation therapy to patient 14 in an open loopmanner. In such cases, stimulation delivery module 52 deliversstimulation to patient 14 during each of the first time periodsaccording to the same stimulation parameters. Additionally, the firstand second time periods alternate and each first time period has thesame duration and each second time period has the same duration.However, the first periods may be the same as or different than thesecond periods. In some examples, stimulation delivery module 52continues to deliver stimulation therapy to patient 14 according tothese stimulation parameters until receiving an instruction from controlmodule 50 to interrupt therapy delivery. In some examples, controlmodule 50 may issue such an instruction to stimulation delivery module52 in response to receiving an input for a user, such as a clinician,via telemetry module 58.

At least one of stimulation programs 66 may define stimulationparameters that cause stimulation delivery module 52 to deliverelectrical stimulation to patient 14 in a closed loop manner. In closedloop stimulation therapy, control module 50 or stimulation deliverymodule 52 may deliver stimulation therapy to patient based on at leastone feedback, e.g., a signal representative of a detected physiologicalstate of patient 14 sensed by at least one of sensor 22, electrode 19,or electrode 21. This physiological state may be a therapy trigger eventused to terminate the electrical stimulation, thereby eliciting thedesired therapeutic effect from patient 14. For example, control module50 or stimulation delivery module 52 may control delivery of electricalstimulation by stimulation delivery module 52 based on a contractionfrequency of bladder 12. In some examples, the control of electricalstimulation delivery by control module 50 or stimulation delivery module52 may include controlling a duration of the second time period duringwhich stimulation delivery module 52 does not deliver stimulationtherapy to patient 14.

To facilitate delivery of stimulation in a closed loop manner, the atleast one of stimulation programs 66 may include a baseline contractionfrequency or a threshold contraction frequency. The baseline contractionfrequency may be contraction frequency of bladder 12 at a time prior todelivery of the electrical stimulation by stimulation delivery module52. For example, the baseline contraction frequency of bladder 12 may besensed and determined by control module 50 after implantation of IMD 16in patient 14, but before stimulation delivery module 52 delivers anyelectrical stimulation to patient 14. In some examples, the baselinecontraction frequency of bladder 12 may represent the patient state whenno therapeutic effects from delivery of stimulation by IMD 16 arepresent.

Control module 50 may determine the baseline contraction frequency ofbladder 12 using any suitable technique. In one example, control module50 determines the baseline contraction frequency by utilizing signalsrepresentative of physiological parameters received from at least one ofsensor 22, electrodes 19 or electrodes 21. In some examples, controlmodule 50 monitors impedance of bladder 12 to detect contraction ofbladder 12 based on signals received from impedance module 54. Forexample, control module 50 may determine an impedance value based onsignals received from impedance module 54 and compare the determinedimpedance value to a threshold impedance value stored in memory 56 asbladder data 69. When the determined impedance value is less than thethreshold value stored in bladder data 69, control module 50 detectsbladder contraction. In some implementations, control module 50 monitorsimpedance of bladder 12 for a predetermined duration of time to detectcontractions of bladder 12, and determines the baseline contractionfrequency of bladder 12 by determining a number of contractions ofbladder 12 in the predetermined duration of time. In other examples,electrodes 19 or 21 may be used to detect an EMG of the detrusor muscleto identify bladder contraction frequencies. Alternatively, a straingauge sensor signal output or other measure of bladder contractionchange may be used to detect the physiological state of bladder 12.

In an example closed loop configuration, control module 50 may begin theelectrical stimulation upon the detection of a moderate bladdercontraction frequency, which can be defined by, for example, a thresholdbladder contraction frequency stored by memory 56 or another device(e.g., programmer 24). This physiological state of bladder 12 mayindicate that a therapeutic effect should be delivered during animpending second time period, e.g. therapy window. Once control module50 detects a heightened frequency of bladder 12 contractions, e.g., afull bladder physiological state, control module 50 may terminate theelectrical stimulation to induce the post-stimulation therapeutic effectof reducing contractions of bladder 12.

In the example illustrated in FIG. 2, impedance module 54 includesvoltage measurement circuitry 62 and current source 64, and may includean oscillator (not shown) or the like for producing an alternatingsignal, as is known. In some examples, as described above with respectto FIG. 1, impedance module 54 may use a four-wire, or Kelvin,arrangement. As an example, control module 50 may periodically controlcurrent source 64 to, for example, source an electrical current signalthrough electrode 19A and sink the electrical current signal throughelectrode 21A. In some examples, for collection of impedancemeasurements, current source 64 may deliver electrical current signalsthat do not deliver stimulation therapy to bladder 12, e.g.,sub-threshold signals, due to, for example, the amplitudes or widths ofsuch signals and/or the timing of delivery of such signals. Impedancemodule 54 may also include a switching module (not shown) forselectively coupling electrodes 19A, 19B, 21A, and 21B to current source64 and voltage measurement circuitry 62. Voltage measurement circuitry62 may measure the voltage between electrodes 19B and 21B. Voltagemeasurement circuitry 62 may include sample and hold circuitry or othersuitable circuitry for measuring voltage amplitudes. Control module 50determines an impedance value from the measure voltage values receivedfrom voltage measurement circuitry 52.

In other examples, control module 50 may monitor signals received fromsensor 22 to detect contraction of bladder 12 and determine the baselinecontraction frequency. In some examples, sensor 22 may be a pressuresensor for detecting changes in pressure of bladder 12, which controlmodule 50 may correlate to contractions of bladder 12. Control module 50may determine a pressure value based on signals received from sensor 22and compare the determined pressure value to a threshold value stored inbladder data 69 to determine whether the signal is indicative of acontraction of bladder 12. In some implementations, control module 50monitors pressure of bladder 12 to detect contractions of bladder 12 fora predetermined duration of time, and determines a contraction frequencyof bladder 12 by calculating a number of contractions of bladder 12 inthe predetermined time period.

In some examples, control module 50 may cause a threshold contractionfrequency to be stored as bladder data 69 in memory 56, and may utilizethe threshold contraction frequency to deliver electrical stimulation ina closed loop manner, e.g., to determine when to begin and terminatedelivery of the electrical stimulation to patient 14 according to aparticular stimulation program. In some implementations, control module50 may, automatically or under control of a user, determine thethreshold contraction frequency based on a baseline contractionfrequency. For example, control module 50 may determine the thresholdcontraction frequency as a predetermined percentage of the baselinecontraction frequency or a percentage of the baseline contractionfrequency input by a user via programmer 24. As one example, thethreshold frequency may be between approximately 75% and approximately100% of the baseline contraction frequency.

In some examples, the threshold contraction frequency may not be basedon a baseline contraction frequency of patient 14, and may instead bebased on clinical data collected from a plurality of patients. Forexample, the threshold contraction frequency may be determined based onan average bladder contraction frequency of a plurality of patientsduring a bladder filling time period, i.e., during a time period inwhich the plurality of patients are not experiencing a voluntary orinvoluntary voiding event. In any case, the threshold contractionfrequency may be stored in bladder data 69, and, in some examples,control module 50 may utilize the threshold contraction frequency forcomparison to detected bladder contractions when delivering stimulationtherapy in a closed loop manner to patient 14. In this manner, thedetected bladder contractions may be used as a therapy trigger eventbased on the threshold contraction frequency.

When the detected bladder contractions exceed the threshold contractionfrequency, control module 50 may terminate electrical stimulation toproduce the desired therapeutic effect after termination, or startelectrical stimulation is not already started, and then terminate theelectrical stimulation after a sufficient period of time to produce thedesired therapeutic effect after termination. Control module 50 mayrepetitively continue to cycle through application of electricalstimulation for a first period of time and then terminate thestimulation to cause the post-stimulation, desired therapeutic effectduring a second period of time immediately following the first period oftime, while the detected threshold contraction frequency continues toexceed the threshold contraction frequency. Control module 50 may delaydelivery of electrical stimulation or termination of electricalstimulation when it is determined that the detected contractionfrequency does not exceed the threshold contraction frequency.

In other examples, instead of utilizing a threshold contractionfrequency or a baseline contraction frequency from other patients,control module 50 may control closed-loop delivery of stimulationtherapy based on EMG signals of patient 14. In some implementations,sensor 22 may include an EMG sensor, and control module 50 may generatean EMG from the received signals generated by sensor 22. Sensor 22 maybe implanted proximate to a muscle which is active when bladder 12 iscontracting, such as a detrusor muscle. Control module 50 may compare anEMG collected during the second time period to EMG templates stored asbladder data 69 (e.g., a short-term running average) to determinewhether the contractions of bladder 12 are indicative of a predeterminedcharacteristic which causes control module 50 to control therapydelivery module 52 to terminate delivery of the stimulation therapy. Forexample, the predetermined characteristic may be a frequency ofcontractions of bladder, an amplitude of the signal (representative ofintensity of contractions of bladder 12), or the like. In some examples,control module 50 can determined, based on the EMG signal generated bysensor 22, whether the frequency of bladder contractions indicate areturn to a baseline contraction frequency or deviation from thebaseline, such that termination of the stimulation delivery isdesirable. In some cases, control module 50 may generate the EMGtemplate based on received signals generated by sensor 22 afterimplantation of IMD 16, but before stimulation delivery module 52delivers any sub-threshold electrical stimulation to patient 14.

Control module 52 may utilize at least one of a threshold contractionfrequency, a baseline contraction frequency, or detected EMG signals tocontrol stimulation delivery module 52 to deliver stimulation therapy ina closed loop manner. For example, during at least the second timeperiods, control module 50 may monitor impedance of bladder 12 to detectcontraction of bladder 12 based on signals received from impedancemodule 54. In some implementations, control module 50 substantiallycontinuously monitors impedance of bladder 12, at least during thesecond time periods, to detect contraction of bladder 12, and determinesa contraction frequency of bladder 12 by determining a number ofcontractions of bladder 12 in a specified time period.

In other examples, sensor 22 may be a pressure sensor and control module50 may monitor signals received from sensor 22 during at least a portionof the second time period to detect contraction of bladder 12. In someimplementations, control module 50 substantially continuously monitorspressure of bladder 12, at least during the second time periods, todetect contraction of bladder 12, and determines a contraction frequencyof bladder 12 by determining a number of contractions of bladder 12 in aspecified time period.

After determining a contraction frequency of bladder 12, control module50 may compare the determined contraction frequency of bladder 12 to thethreshold contraction frequency stored in memory 56 as bladder data 69.When the determined contraction frequency is greater than orsubstantially equal to the threshold contraction frequency stored inbladder data 69, control module 50 may control stimulation deliverymodule 52 to initiate delivery of electrical stimulation to patient 14(e.g., to begin the first period of time). However, if the delivery ofelectrical stimulation has already begun, control module 50 mayterminate the electrical stimulation once the determined contractionfrequency is greater than or substantially equal to the thresholdcontraction frequency stored in bladder data 69.

In other examples, control module 50 may compare the determinedcontraction frequency of bladder 12 and the baseline contractionfrequency to determine a difference between the determined contractionfrequency and the baseline contraction frequency. In some examples, whenthe difference is less than or equal to a specified value (e.g., athreshold difference value) control module 50 may cause stimulationdelivery module 52 to initiate delivery of electrical stimulation topatient 14 or terminate electrical stimulation to immediately induce adesired therapeutic effect.

In other examples, sensor 22 may include an EMG sensor, and processor 50may generate an EMG from the received signals generated by sensor 22(e.g., which may sense the muscle activity with one or more sensorpositioned near the target muscle) and compare the EMG to an EMGtemplate stored as bladder data 69 to determine whether the contractionsof bladder 12 are indicative of a predetermined characteristic whichcauses control module 50 to control stimulation delivery module 52 toinitiate delivery of the electrical stimulation. For example, thepredetermined characteristic may be a frequency of contractions ofbladder, an amplitude of the signal (representative of intensity ofcontractions of bladder 12), or the like.

In some implementations, closed loop therapy may allow control module 50and stimulation delivery module 52 to deliver more efficacious therapyto patient 14 by timing the delivery of the electrical stimulation torespond to or anticipate a specific physiological state (e.g., a bladdercontraction frequency level) of patient 14. For example, based on thedetermined contraction frequency of bladder 12, control module 50 maycause stimulation delivery module 52 to initiate delivery of electricalstimulation to patient 14 in advance of the therapy window needed toprovide a therapeutic effect to patient 14.

As discussed above, delivery of electrical stimulation during the firsttime period may generate a desired therapeutic effect (e.g., aphysiological response that alleviates a previous condition) that helpsprevent the occurrence of an involuntary voiding event, whereby thetherapeutic effect occurs only after termination of the electricalstimulation. Thus, by timing the delivery of the electrical stimulationto occur prior to observing a return to increased bladder contractionfrequencies (e.g., at or above the threshold), control module 50 mayhelp time therapy such that there is sufficient time for the electricalstimulation to generate the desired therapeutic effect. In someexamples, the first time period during which the electrical stimulationis delivered to patient 14 is selected to generate the desiredpost-stimulation therapeutic effect (e.g., a particular percentagereduction in bladder contraction frequency or a particular bladdercontraction frequency value) during the second time period. The deliveryof the electrical stimulation by therapy module 52 does not generate anacute physiological response in patient 14 prior to the termination ofthe electrical stimulation. In particular, the electrical stimulationhas an intensity insufficient to generate the desired post-stimulationtherapeutic effect during the stimulation.

In the example of FIG. 2, stimulation delivery module 52 driveselectrodes on a single lead 28. Specifically, stimulation deliverymodule 52 delivers sub-threshold electrical stimulation to tissue ofpatient 14 via selected electrodes 29A-29D carried by lead 28. Aproximal end of lead 28 extends from the housing of IMD 16 and a distalend of lead 28 extends to a target therapy site, such as a spinal nerve(e.g., an S3 nerve), or a therapy site within the pelvic floor, such astissue sites proximate a sacral nerve, a pudendal nerve, a tibial nerve,a dorsal genital nerve, an inferior rectal nerve, a perineal nerve, ahypogastric nerve, a urinary sphincter, or any combination thereof. Inother examples, stimulation delivery module 52 may deliver electricalstimulation with electrodes on more than one lead and each of the leadsmay carry one or more electrodes. The leads may be configured as anaxial leads with ring electrodes and/or paddle leads with electrode padsarranged in a two-dimensional array. The electrodes may operate in abipolar or multi-polar configuration with other electrodes, or mayoperate in a unipolar configuration referenced to an electrode carriedby the device housing or “can” of IMD 16.

As previously described, sensor 22 may comprise a pressure sensorconfigured to detect changes in bladder pressure, electrodes for sensingpudendal or sacral afferent nerve signals, or electrodes for sensingexternal urinary sphincter EMG signals (or anal sphincter signals inexamples in which IMD 16 provides fecal urgency or fecal incontinencetherapy), or any combination thereof. Additionally or alternatively,sensor 22 may comprise a motion sensor, such as a two-axisaccelerometer, three-axis accelerometer, one or more gyroscopes,pressure transducers, piezoelectric crystals, or other sensors thatgenerate a signal that changes as patient activity level or posturestate changes. Control module 50 may detect a patient conditionindicative of a high probability of an incontinence event (e.g., aparticular bladder contraction frequency level or abnormal detrusormuscle activity) or other trigger events based on signals received fromsensor 22 in addition to instead of impedance module 54. Sensor 22 mayalso be a motion sensor that is responsive to tapping (e.g., by patient14) on skin superior to IMD 16 and, as previously described, controlmodule 50 may control therapy module 52 to deliver the electricalstimulation or terminate the electrical stimulation in response todetection of the patient tapping.

In examples in which sensor 22 includes a motion sensor, control module50 may determine a patient activity level or posture state based on asignal generated by sensor 22. This patient activity level may be, forexample, sitting, exercising, working, running, walking, or any otheractivity of patient 14. For example, control module 50 may determine apatient activity level by sampling the signal from sensor 22 anddetermining a number of activity counts during a sample period, where aplurality of activity levels are associated with respective activitycounts. In one example, control module 50 compares the signal generatedby sensor 22 to one or more amplitude thresholds stored within memory56, and identifies each threshold crossing as an activity count. In anyof these cases in which control module 50 controls the sub-thresholdelectrical stimulation in closed-loop fashion, the data used toterminate the stimulation may be considered therapy trigger events.

In some examples, control module 50 may control stimulation deliverymodule 52 to deliver or terminate the electrical stimulation based onpatient input received via telemetry module 58. Telemetry module 58includes any suitable hardware, firmware, software or any combinationthereof for communicating with another device, such as programmer 24(FIG. 1). Under the control of control module 50, telemetry module 58may receive downlink telemetry, e.g., patient input, from and senduplink telemetry, e.g., an alert, to programmer 24 with the aid of anantenna, which may be internal and/or external. Control module 50 mayprovide the data to be uplinked to programmer 24 and the control signalsfor the telemetry circuit within telemetry module 58, and receive datafrom telemetry module 58.

Generally, control module 50 controls telemetry module 58 to exchangeinformation with medical device programmer 24 and/or another deviceexternal to IMD 16. Control module 50 may transmit operationalinformation and receive stimulation programs or stimulation parameteradjustments via telemetry module 58. Also, in some examples, IMD 16 maycommunicate with other implanted devices, such as stimulators, controldevices, or sensors, via telemetry module 58.

Power source 60 delivers operating power to the components of IMD 16.Power source 60 may include a battery and a power generation circuit toproduce the operating power. In some examples, the battery may berechargeable to allow extended operation. Recharging may be accomplishedthrough proximal inductive interaction between an external charger andan inductive charging coil within IMD 16. In other examples, an externalinductive power supply may transcutaneously power IMD 16 wheneverelectrical stimulation is to occur.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating an example configuration of anexternal programmer 24. While programmer 24 may generally be describedas a hand-held computing device, the programmer may be a notebookcomputer, a cell phone, or a workstation, for example. As illustrated inFIG. 3, external programmer 24 may include a control module 70, memory72, user interface 74, telemetry module 76, and power source 78. Memory72 may store program instructions that, when executed by control module70, cause control module 70 and external programmer 24 to provide thefunctionality ascribed to external programmer 24 throughout thisdisclosure.

In general, programmer 24 comprises any suitable arrangement ofhardware, alone or in combination with software and/or firmware, toperform the techniques attributed to programmer 24, and control module70, user interface 74, and telemetry module 76 of programmer 24. Invarious examples, programmer 24 may include one or more processors, suchas one or more microprocessors, DSPs, ASICs, FPGAs, or any otherequivalent integrated or discrete logic circuitry, as well as anycombinations of such components. Programmer 24 also, in variousexamples, may include a memory 72, such as RAM, ROM, PROM, EPROM,EEPROM, flash memory, a hard disk, a CD-ROM, comprising executableinstructions for causing the one or more processors to perform theactions attributed to them. Moreover, although control module 70 andtelemetry module 76 are described as separate modules, in some examples,control module 70 and telemetry module 76 are functionally integrated.In some examples, control module 70 and telemetry module 76 andtelemetry module 58 correspond to individual hardware units, such asASICs, DSPs, FPGAs, or other hardware units.

Memory 72 may store program instructions that, when executed by controlmodule 70, cause control module 70 and programmer 24 to provide thefunctionality ascribed to programmer 24 throughout this disclosure. Insome examples, memory 72 may further include program information, e.g.,stimulation programs defining the electrical stimulation, similar tothose stored in memory 56 of IMD 16. The stimulation programs stored inmemory 72 may be downloaded into memory 56 of IMD 16.

User interface 74 may include a button or keypad, lights, a speaker forvoice commands, a display, such as a liquid crystal (LCD),light-emitting diode (LED), or cathode ray tube (CRT). In some examplesthe display may be a touch screen. As discussed in this disclosure,control module 70 may present and receive information relating toelectrical stimulation and resulting therapeutic effects via userinterface 74. For example, control module 70 may receive patient inputvia user interface 74. The input may be, for example, in the form ofpressing a button on a keypad or selecting an icon from a touch screen.

Control module 70 may also present information to the patient in theform of alerts related to delivery of the electrical stimulation topatient 14 or a caregiver, as described in more detail below, via userinterface 74. Although not shown, programmer 24 may additionally oralternatively include a data or network interface to another computingdevice, to facilitate communication with the other device, andpresentation of information relating to the electrical stimulation andtherapeutic effects after termination of the electrical stimulation viathe other device.

Telemetry module 76 supports wireless communication between IMD 16 andprogrammer 24 under the control of control module 70. Telemetry module76 may also be configured to communicate with another computing devicevia wireless communication techniques, or direct communication through awired connection. In some examples, telemetry module 76 may besubstantially similar to telemetry module 58 of IMD 16 described above,providing wireless communication via an RF or proximal inductive medium.In some examples, telemetry module 76 may include an antenna, which maytake on a variety of forms, such as an internal or external antenna.

Examples of local wireless communication techniques that may be employedto facilitate communication between programmer 24 and another computingdevice include RF communication according to the 802.11 or Bluetoothspecification sets, infrared communication, e.g., according to the IrDAstandard, or other standard or proprietary telemetry protocols. In thismanner, other external devices may be capable of communicating withprogrammer 24 without needing to establish a secure wireless connection.

IMD 16 and/or programmer 24 may control of the timing of the delivery ofthe sub-threshold electrical stimulation that generates a physiologicalresponse (e.g., a therapeutic response) from patient 14 upon terminationof the electrical stimulation to manage bladder dysfunction, forexample. If external programmer 24 controls the stimulation, programmer24 may transmit stimulation programs for implementation by controlmodule 50 to IMD 16 via telemetry module 76. A user (e.g., patient 14 ora clinician) may select the time at which the therapy window begins(e.g., the beginning of the second time period), the duration of thetherapy window (e.g., the duration of the second time period after thetermination of the electrical stimulation), and/or the beginning timefor the electrical stimulation via a display of user interface 74. Inother examples, the user may select a specific stimulation program orrate the effectiveness of a particular stimulation program from a listpresented via a display of user interface 74. Programmer 24 can also beconfigured to transmit a signal to IMD 16 indicating that control module50 should execute locally stored programs or therapy routines. In such amanner, control over the electrical stimulation may be distributedbetween IMD 16 and external programmer 24, or may reside in either onealone.

In some examples, patient 14 may provide an input that requests atherapy, e.g., the therapeutic effects induced after electricalstimulation termination, via programmer 24. This patient input may be atherapy trigger event upon which IMD 16 terminates the electricalstimulation. In this way, patient 14 may use programmer 24 to controlwhen the therapeutic effect is induced (e.g., the beginning of thetherapy window) by initiating the termination of the electricalstimulation. Patient 14 may also use programmer 24 to begin theelectrical stimulation when therapy is desired, but the therapeuticeffect would be delayed until the electrical stimulation can beterminated, i.e., following the first period of time. Both of theseexamples may be considered “on demand” therapy, but starting theelectrical stimulation would be more of a “delayed on demand” thanmerely requesting termination of stimulation.

In other examples, patient 14, or any other user, may utilize programmer24 to create various schedules, times of the day, or activities in whichpatient 14 would like to target the therapy window. The therapy windowmay start soon after (e.g., within about 2 minutes to about 10 minutes,)the termination of the electrical stimulation. In one example, thetherapy window may start within approximately 2 minutes to 5 minutes ofthe termination of the electrical stimulation. For example, if patient14 typically would desire a therapeutic effect that quiets bladdercontractions during a car drive home from work, patient 14 useprogrammer 24 to schedule the electrical stimulation to start ahead ofthe desired therapy window. If the therapy window is selected to bebetween 5:30 P.M and 6:00 P.M. and the electrical stimulation must bedelivered for 15 minutes prior to termination, programmer 24 may controlIMD 16 to begin the delivery of the electrical stimulation at 5:15 P.Mand terminate the stimulation at 5:30 P.M. In this manner, programmer 24may be used to provide some automation to the therapy and updateparameters that define when the electrical stimulation is started andterminated.

Power source 78 delivers operating power to the components of programmer24. Power source 78 may include a battery and a power generation circuitto produce the operating power. In some examples, the battery may berechargeable to allow extended operation.

FIG. 4 is an example timing diagram 80 of electrical stimulationdelivered to induce a post-stimulation therapeutic effect afterstimulation termination. As shown in FIG. 4, timing diagram 80 includesstimulation cycle 82. Stimulation cycle 82 is a representation of anexample duty cycle for electrical stimulation delivered to patient 14 toinduce a desired therapeutic effect after termination of the electricalstimulation. Timing diagram 80 illustrates the intensity of theelectrical stimulation during stimulation cycle 82, as a percentage oftherapeutic threshold 90, over time in minutes. Therapeutic threshold 90may be the therapeutic intensity threshold previously identified forpatient 14, e.g., the intensity at which the desired therapeutic effectis produced during stimulation. The intensity may be at least partiallydefined by either a current or voltage amplitude. In some examples, theintensity may also be defined by a pulse width, pulse frequency, and/orburst frequency.

Hence, the stimulation intensity may be conveniently selected in arelatively simple manner based on a percentage of the therapeutic (orphysiological) threshold for generation of a desired therapeutic effect.For example, a percentage of an amplitude associated with the thresholdmay be selected, or percentages of one or more of amplitude, pulse widthor pulse rate may be selected. Some range of percentages may be found tobe effective in providing electrical stimulation that causes the desiredtherapeutic effect post-stimulation, but does not cause the desiredtherapeutic effect during stimulation. The range of percentages can bedetermined based on experimentation on patient 14 or based onexperimentation on a group of patients.

In other examples, the intensity of the electrical stimulation may beselected more precisely based on experimentation to determine otherthresholds related to generation of the desired therapeutic effect afterstimulation is terminated. In particular, the intensity of theelectrical stimulation may be determined to be not only less than thetherapeutic intensity threshold 90 sufficient to generate the desiredtherapeutic effect during stimulation, but also below a physiologicalthreshold stimulation intensity, shown as threshold 91, sufficient toproduce the an acute physiological response (e.g., a motor response)during the stimulation. However, in other examples, the intensity of thestimulation may also be selected to be above threshold 91, as shown inFIG. 4.

In order to induce the desired therapeutic effect after termination ofstimulation, the intensity may need to remain above a minimum threshold93. Thresholds 90, 91, and 93 are shown merely for purposes ofillustration of the threshold concepts for selection of stimulationintensity of stimulation cycle 82 and are not intended to indicate anyactual thresholds for any particular patient or patient population.Rather, one or more of such thresholds may be determined for individualpatients and used to set appropriate stimulation intensity levels bymanipulation of one or more stimulation parameters.

Stimulation cycle 82 begins at time zero with stimulation delivery event84. Stimulation delivery event 84 may be any detected event that callsfor the initiation, or the beginning, of electrical stimulation. In somecases, if electrical stimulation is not already being applied,stimulation delivery event 84 may be a therapy trigger event. Inaddition, or instead, stimulation delivery event 84 may be the start ofa timer, the expiration of a previous time period, a detectedphysiological state, or a patient input from programmer 24. In theexample shown in FIG. 4, the intensity of stimulation cycle 82 ischanged from zero to approximately 75% of threshold 90 (or threshold91), e.g., by adjusting stimulation amplitude to be about 75% of thestimulation amplitude associated with threshold 90, or adjusting anotherparameter such as pulse width or pulse rate in a similar manner. Inother examples, stimulation cycle 82 may include other intensities. Thechange in intensity may occur immediately or ramp up over apredetermined ramp period or at a predetermined ramp rate (e.g., via astep-wise ramp function, a linear ramp function, or a non-linear rampfunction). Ramping up to the desired intensity of the electricalstimulation may prevent or reduce perception by patient 14. Although thestimulation intensity may include amplitudes well above zero, theamplitude may be lowered, for example, when the electrode is positionedcloser to a nerve. In this case, the amplitude may even approach zero inorder to deliver an intensity that is sufficient to induce a desiredpost-stimulation therapeutic effect.

In the example shown in FIG. 4, the electrical stimulation (e.g., the“ON” portion of stimulation cycle 82) may be delivered at an intensitybelow therapeutic threshold 90. This electrical stimulation may be, forexample, between 50% and 100% of therapeutic threshold 90, e.g., 75% inthe example of FIG. 4. In some examples, the electrical stimulation maybe delivered at an intensity below 50% of therapeutic threshold 90.Alternatively, the electrical stimulation may be selected based on apercentage of physiological threshold 91. The lowest intensity threshold93 of stimulation that is still sufficient to induce a post-stimulationtherapeutic effect may be different for each patient and may need to beexperimentally determined, as discussed above. In other examples,electrical stimulation of stimulation cycle 82 may be provided with anintensity above physiological threshold 91. Although this abovethreshold stimulation may cause some type of acute physiologicalresponse in patient 14, the response may generally be minimal whencompared to the desired therapeutic effect induced after termination ofthe electrical stimulation (e.g., an ancillary therapeutic effect lessthan 20% of the post-stimulation therapeutic effect). Because thedesired therapeutic effect is an induced effect after termination of theelectrical stimulation, e.g., during the “OFF” phase of stimulationcycle 82, the exact intensity for the electrical stimulation may varyfrom patient to patient.

When IMD 16 delivers stimulation to patient 14 according to stimulationcycle 82, stimulation is delivered to patient 14 for approximately 15minutes before termination. This 15 minute period between minutes zeroand 15, or between stimulation delivery event 84 and therapy triggerevent 86, represents the first time period. In some examples, theduration of the first time period may generally be between five minutesand 30 minutes, or between approximately 10 minutes and 20 minutes. Thefirst time period may be selected and customized for a specific patient14, in some examples.

When the intensity of stimulation cycle 82 is non-zero, the electricalstimulation being delivered is may not be a continuous pulse ofelectrical stimulation. Instead, in some examples, in a stimulationinterval extending from the start of electrical stimulation delivery atstimulation delivery event 84 to the termination of stimulation attherapy trigger event 86, the sub-threshold electrical stimulation mayinclude multiple pulses delivered at a given pulse rate and pulse width.For example, IMD 16 may deliver a continuous train or pulses or burstsof pulses during the electrical stimulation between minutes 0 and 15 inFIG. 4, i.e., in the stimulation interval between events 84 and 86. Theintensity shown by stimulation cycle 82 may be a peak intensity of eachof the pulses delivered during the stimulation interval or an average ofeach pulse peak intensity in the stimulation interval if not all pulsesare equal.

After IMD 16 detects therapy trigger event 86, IMD 16 terminates thedelivery of the electrical stimulation such that the stimulationinterval ends and stimulation cycle 82 returns to zero intensity. Asdescribed above, therapy trigger event 86 may be generated in responseto an elapsed time period (e.g., the end of the first time period), adetected physiological state of patient 14 (e.g., an above thresholdbladder contraction frequency or bladder pressure), a user input (e.g.,a patient request for a therapeutic effect), or any other event thatwould indicate the termination of the electrical stimulation.

Therapy window T may be the desired time period during which thepost-stimulation, desired therapeutic effect is to occur, such as apost-stimulation inhibitory effect on bladder contraction. For example,therapy window T may be a normal time during which patient 14 maybenefit from quieting of bladder contractions, i.e., reduction inbladder contraction frequency. Stimulation cycle 82 may be defined by astimulation program such that the termination of the electricalstimulation is equal to, or occurs prior to, the start of therapy windowT. Although therapy window T may be a time period, in other examples,therapy window T may simply be defined by the start of therapy window T.As shown in FIG. 4, in one example, therapy window T may beapproximately 20 minutes in duration.

During therapy window T, IMD 16 may be locked out from deliveringsubsequent electrical stimulation. This lockout period may be providedso that the therapeutic effect has time to be induced and any otherstimulation does not interfere with the therapeutic effect. In otherwords, electrical stimulation delivered during therapy window T mayprevent the therapeutic effect from being induced. The lockout periodmay coincide with the time period of desired therapy window T or thesecond time period between successive sub-threshold stimulation deliveryevents 86 and 88. However, the lockout period may be shorter or longerthan the therapy window in other examples. The lockout period may beinitiated upon detection of therapy trigger event 86 and/or thetermination of the electrical stimulation.

Stimulation delivery events 84, 88 indicate times at which electricalstimulation is delivered, and may indicate regular times or irregulartimes. Therapy trigger event 86 indicates a time that stimulation isterminated to cause the delivery of the post-stimulation, desiredtherapeutic effect that is observed following such termination of theelectrical stimulation. The time period between therapy trigger event 86and stimulation delivery event 88, when the electrical stimulation isinitiated again, may be described as the second time period. During thesecond time period, stimulation cycle 82 is at substantially zerointensity (e.g., zero intensity or as close to zero as permitted by thehardware of IMD 16) because the electrical stimulation is not beingdelivered to patient 14 by IMD 16. Although therapy window T may overlapwith only a portion of the second time period, as shown in FIG. 4,therapy window T may be equivalent to the second time period in otherexamples. Generally, the second time period during which stimulation isnot delivered, and the post-stimulation, desired therapeutic effect isproduced, may be between approximately five minutes and 30 minutes.However, longer or shorter second time periods may be appropriate forsome patients or conditions. In the example of FIG. 4, the second timeperiod is approximately 25 minutes, extending from a time of 15 minutesto 40 minutes, relative to event 84 at a time of 0 minutes.

In some examples, the first time period and second time period from onecycle of stimulation cycle 82 may be substantially equal to the firsttime period and second time period from a subsequent cycle ofstimulation cycle 82. In other examples, at least one of the first timeperiod or the second time period may change over subsequent cycles. Thechanges in time periods may occur due to patient request, clinicianinstructions, detected physiological states during or after theelectrical stimulation, or any other therapeutic reason.

FIG. 5 is an example graph 100 that illustrates an example of a changein the frequency of bladder contractions after terminating the deliveryof the electrical stimulation. Graph 100 is shown merely for purposes ofillustration of the concept of the post-stimulation therapeutic effectand is not intended to indicate any actual results for any particularpatient or patient population. In FIG. 5, frequency 102 is a trace ofthe bladder contraction frequency of patient 14 over time and maycorrespond to stimulation cycle 82 and the timeline of FIG. 4. As shownin FIG. 5, frequency 104 is normalized (i.e., divided by) to the bladdercontraction frequency observed prior to delivering the electricalstimulation, and frequency 104 changes due to the termination of theelectrical stimulation.

When delivery of the electrical stimulation is started at time zero,frequency 102 is approximately equal to 100% of the normalized bladdercontraction frequency that exists prior to delivery of stimulation.Hence, in this example, the electrical stimulation does not produce thedesired therapeutic effect of reducing the bladder contraction frequencyby a desired amount. Over stimulation period S (e.g., the first timeperiod), IMD 16 delivers the electrical stimulation. During stimulationperiod S, frequency 102 may vary slightly. However, frequency 102maintains substantially the same bladder contraction frequency as beforedelivery of the electrical stimulation. In this manner, the electricalstimulation has an intensity that is insufficient to cause the desiredtherapeutic effect (reduced bladder contraction frequency) duringstimulation. In fact, frequency 102 shows substantially zero therapeuticeffect on reduction in contraction frequency during stimulation periodS, relative to a baseline contraction frequency before delivery ofstimulation.

In other examples, frequency 102 may decrease slightly duringstimulation period S from the electrical stimulation. However, thischange in frequency 102 may only be considered a minimal, ancillarytherapeutic effect prior to the termination of stimulation, and may besubstantially less than the desired reduction in frequency 102 afterstimulation is terminated. For example, the therapeutic efficacy of thisancillary therapeutic effect may be less than 20 percent of the targetefficacy level, e.g., for the desired therapeutic effect aftertermination. In other examples, the minimal therapeutic effect duringthe electrical stimulation of stimulation period S may be greater than20% of the desired post-stimulation therapeutic effect aftertermination. Again, the target efficacy level may correspond to aparticular amount of reduction in bladder contractions. In either case,any therapeutic effect or physiological response observed duringstimulation period S is not the desired therapeutic effect as specifiedby a user and may not even be perceived by patient 14.

Hence, in some examples, electrical stimulation is selected to not causethe desired therapeutic effect during stimulation period S, but to causethe desired therapeutic effect after electrical stimulation isterminated. Also, in other examples, the electrical stimulation may bebelow a physiological threshold that is selected to not cause an acutephysiological response, e.g., such as a motor response or patientperception of stimulation, during the stimulation. Again, the intensityof the stimulation may be selected to produce the desired therapeuticeffect on a post-stimulation basis. However, in these examples, theintensity is selected to be sub-threshold in the sense that thestimulation does not produce the desired therapeutic effect. To selectthe intensity in a straightforward manner, a current or voltageamplitude may be selected. However, pulse width, pulse rate or otherparameters alternatively or additionally may be select to produce adesired stimulation intensity.

Once therapy trigger event 104 is detected and the electricalstimulation is terminated, bladder contraction frequency 102 may beginto decrease toward a reduced bladder contraction frequency associatedwith a desired therapeutic effect. The desired therapeutic effect maynot occur immediately but may occur at some point during therapy windowT. For example, during therapy window T, frequency 102 may decreasesteadily until reaching maximum effect 108. Maximum effect 108 may bethe maximum therapeutic effect, or part of the desired therapeuticeffect, that correlates with the effect of decreased bladder contractionfrequency 102. For example, maximum effect 108 may correspond in time tothe lowest bladder contraction frequency observed during therapy windowT and stimulation period S. However, in some examples, patient 14 mayenjoy relief from the bladder dysfunction during all or a majority oftherapy window T, e.g., between the 15 and 35 minute marks in graph 100,even though stimulation is not being delivered. In some examples,therapy window T may be coincident with a lockout period during whichstimulation is not delivered. As described above, the lockout period mayprevent additional stimulation from disrupting the therapy providedduring therapy window T. In addition, therapy window T may be equal tothe second time period, or at least a portion of the second time period,in which the electrical stimulation is not delivered to patient 14.

After termination of the electrical stimulation and during therapywindow T, IMD 16 may start to monitor or continue to monitorphysiological states of patient 14. One physiological state may be thebladder contraction frequency indicated by frequency 102. Alternatively,or in addition, IMD 16 may monitor other physiological states toevaluate the effectiveness of the stimulation program used to deliverthe electrical stimulation. For example, IMD 16 may monitor potentialvoiding, bladder pressure, heart rate, breathing rate, or any otherphysiological responses. IMD 16 may also utilize patient input ofperceived efficacy and voiding events, for example, when monitoringpost-stimulation therapy. Based on this monitoring, IMD 16 mayautomatically select new stimulation parameters or a new stimulationprogram in an attempt to maximize or at least increase thepost-stimulation therapeutic effect after subsequent deliveries of theelectrical stimulation, i.e., in subsequent stimulation cycles.

Window end 106 may be the time at which the therapy window T ceases.After this time, recovery period R begins and continues as frequency 102increases back toward the baseline of 100% contraction frequency.Recovery period R may continue for several minutes, hours, or even days.However, IMD 16 may restart the delivery of the sub-threshold electricalstimulation at any time during recovery period R. As shown in FIG. 4,for example, IMD 16 may be programmed such that the electricalstimulation may be started again at minute 40, e.g., in a cyclicalmanner. Alternatively, stimulation may be delivered in an on-demand modeor other modes that are responsive to other therapy trigger events.

Although graph 100 illustrates the bladder contraction frequency as thedesired therapeutic effect, other physiological responses may bemonitored or targeted by the electrical stimulation as the desiredtherapeutic effect. For example, the electrical stimulation may betargeted to induce a therapeutic effect on bladder pressure, urinarysphincter pressure, bowel pressure, pelvic pain. In this manner, thepost-stimulation therapy may be directed to tissues and areas of patient14 other than bladder 12.

FIG. 6 is a flow diagram that illustrates an example technique forinducing a desired therapeutic effect by terminating the delivery ofelectrical stimulation. As described in FIG. 6, control module 50 andstimulation delivery module 52 of IMD 16 may be used to deliver andterminate the electrical stimulation. While FIG. 6 is described withrespect to control module 50, in other examples, programmer 24 or otherdevices may be used to control delivery of electrical stimulation by IMD16.

In the example of FIG. 6, control module 50 controls stimulationdelivery module 52 of IMD 16 to deliver electrical stimulation for afirst period of time (107), as described in this disclosure. Theelectrical stimulation may have an intensity selected that isinsufficient to cause the desired therapeutic effect during stimulationdelivery but sufficient to induce the desired therapeutic effect aftertermination of the stimulation. In other words, the deliveredstimulation intensity may be below a therapeutic threshold. In otherexamples, the stimulation may also be below a physiological threshold inthat it is selected to have an intensity, e.g., by selection ofamplitude, pulse width and/or pulse rate, that is insufficient to causean acute physiological response, e.g., a motor response or sensoryresponse, during stimulation. As described herein, the stimulationintensity is selected to be sufficient to cause the desired therapeuticeffect after termination of the stimulation, at least when thestimulation is applied during a first period of time that is sufficientto cause the desired therapeutic effect after termination ofstimulation.

Upon receiving a therapy request (109), such as a therapy trigger eventas described in this disclosure (e.g., a patient therapy request, timerexpiration, time of day, sensed physiological signal or physiologicalstate determined based on the sensed physiological signal, orcharacteristic, or the like), control module 50 controls stimulationdelivery module 52 of IMD 16 to turn off the electrical stimulation todeliver the therapy (111). In the example shown in FIG. 6, turning offthe stimulation causes the desired therapeutic effect, such as reducedbladder contraction frequency. In some examples, the desired therapeuticeffect may not be observed or elicited from patient 14 until after theelectrical stimulation is turned off or at least reduced to the lowestlevel permitted by the hardware of IMD 16. Alternatively, the desiredtherapeutic effect may be provided both during stimulation and aftertermination of stimulation, in other examples. In each case, stimulationis actually turned off, rather than turned on, to cause the desiredtherapeutic effect to the patient after termination of the stimulation.

FIG. 7 is a flow diagram that illustrates an example technique forinducing a therapeutic effect by terminating the electrical stimulation.As described in FIG. 7, control module 50 and stimulation deliverymodule 52 of IMD 16 may be used to deliver and terminate the electricalstimulation. However, in other examples, programmer 24 or other devicesmay be used during the control processes.

In the technique shown in FIG. 7, control module 50 controls thedelivery of the electrical stimulation with stimulation delivery module52 (110). As described herein, stimulation may be initiated based on atimer, patient input, detected physiological state, or any other event.As long as the therapy trigger event is not detected (“NO” branch ofblock 112), stimulation delivery module 52 continues to deliver theelectrical stimulation (110). If a therapy trigger event time is knownin advance, electrical stimulation may be delivered in advance of theknown therapy trigger event to permit sufficient time for the electricalstimulation to cause the desired therapeutic effect after termination ofstimulation. The therapy trigger event may be an elapsed time period,e.g., since the end of a previous therapy window, a particular time ofday, a patient input requesting therapy, or a detected physiologicalstate, for example.

If control module 50 detects the therapy trigger event (“YES” branch ofblock 112), then control module 50 terminates the electrical stimulation(114) to cause the post-stimulation therapeutic effect. Although controlmodule 50 may only be configured to detect a single type of therapytrigger event, in other examples, control module 50 may terminate thestimulation upon detecting one of multiple types of therapy triggerevent. As one example, termination may occur upon detecting a certainelevated bladder contraction frequency or a patient request for therapy.In some examples, control module 50 may only terminate the electricalstimulation after detecting two sequential therapy trigger events (e.g.,an expiration of a timer and a subsequent patient input request fortherapy).

Once stimulation is terminated, control module 50 enters the second timeperiod, or therapy window, in which the desired therapeutic effect isinduced. During this time, control module 50 may be subject to a lockoutperiod. If the lockout period has not expired (“NO” branch of block116), control module 50 is still prevented from delivering stimulation.Once the lockout period expires (“YES” branch of block 116), controlmodule 50 checks to determine if the electrical stimulation is to bedelivered again (118). For example, control module 50 may determinestimulation is to be delivered again (e.g., for another first period oftime) based on a continued request from the patient, a physiologicalstate exceeding a threshold, or any other condition in which stimulationis to be delivered. If no stimulation is to be delivered (“NO” branch ofblock 118), control module 50 does not deliver stimulation. If controlmodule 50 receives a command to deliver electrical stimulation (“YES”branch of block 118), then control module 50 controls stimulationdelivery module 52 to deliver the electrical stimulation again (110).

As described herein, the lockout period may be at least a portion of thetherapy window and/or the second time period between delivery of theelectrical stimulation. The lockout period may essentially be a firstevent that needs to occur before another command for stimulation isreceived. In examples in which the electrical stimulation is deliveredonly based on timers or schedules, the lockout period may not benecessary.

As discussed above, in various implementations, the electricalstimulation may be continuously delivered and terminated in response toa therapy trigger event to cause the desired therapeutic eventpost-stimulation, i.e., after termination of the stimulation.Alternatively, the electrical stimulation may be initiated at somesufficient period of time in advance of a known therapy trigger event,particularly where the electrical stimulation must be delivered for aminimum period of time to support generation of the desired therapeuticeffect after termination of stimulation. In other examples, ifelectrical stimulation is not already being delivered and must bedelivered for some period of time, the electrical stimulation may beinitiated in response to the trigger therapy event, such a patienttherapy request or detection of a physiological signal, and thenterminated after the electrical stimulation has been delivered for atleast a minimum period of time sufficient to support thepost-stimulation, desired therapeutic effect.

FIG. 8 is a flow diagram that illustrates an example technique formonitoring a physiological state to adjust parameters of an electricalstimulation. As described in FIG. 8, control module 50 and stimulationdelivery module 52 of IMD 16 may be used to deliver and terminate theelectrical stimulation. Control module 50 may also automatically selectnew parameters. However, in other examples, programmer 24 or otherdevices may be used during technique of FIG. 8.

Control module 50 initially controls the delivery of the electricalstimulation with stimulation delivery module 52 (120). As long as thetherapy trigger event is not detected (“NO” branch of block 122),stimulation delivery module 52 continues to deliver the electricalstimulation (120). If control module 50 detects the therapy triggerevent (“YES” branch of block 122), then control module 50 terminates theelectrical stimulation (124).

Once stimulation is terminated, control module 50 enters the second timeperiod, or therapy window, in which the therapeutic effect is induced.During this time, control module 50 may monitor one or morephysiological states of patient 14 (126). For examples, control module50 may monitor changes to the bladder contraction frequency, bladderpressure, nerve signals, or even patient 14 input for any responsesindicative of a post-stimulation induced therapeutic effect. Based onthis monitoring, control module 50 may determine if the electricalstimulation was effective at inducing a therapeutic effect (128). Insome examples, control module 50 may determine effectiveness based onone or more thresholds for the physiological states (e.g., bladdercontraction frequency or bladder pressure) monitored after stimulationtermination. If the electrical stimulation was effective (“YES” branchof block 128), control module 50 continues to determine when to againdeliver the electrical stimulation (130), e.g., upon the start ofanother therapy cycle in advance of a known therapy trigger event or inresponse to a therapy trigger event. Alternatively, if the electricalstimulation was effective, control module 50 may return to continuouslydeliver stimulation (120), possibly after some time delay, and wait forthe next therapy trigger event.

If the electrical stimulation was not effective (“NO” branch of block128), then control module 50 may select new stimulation parameters ornew stimulation programs that define the electrical stimulation (132).Control module 50 may follow parameter or program selection rules storedin memory 56. In one example, control module 50 may simply select thenext program in a list of ordered programs provided by the clinician. Inanother example, control module 50 may refer to a lookup table thatindicates certain parameters or programs to try based on thephysiological states monitored after termination of the stimulation. Insome examples, control module 50 may continue to adhere to staying belowthe therapeutic intensity threshold, or the threshold stimulationintensity for sub-threshold stimulation, when adjusting stimulationparameters and programs.

After the parameters of the electrical stimulation have been adjusted,control module 50 determines when to again deliver the electricalstimulation (130). Once control module 50 determines that electricalstimulation is to be delivered (“YES” branch of block 130), controlmodule 50 controls stimulation delivery module 52 to deliver theelectrical stimulation (120).

In other examples, control module 50 may not directly select newstimulation parameters or programs. Instead, control module 50 maytransmit a request to programmer 24 that new stimulation parameters orprograms are required. Programmer 24 may then prompt the user, e.g., aclinician or patient 14, to select new stimulation parameters or newstimulation programs to control the delivery of the electricalstimulation. Programmer 24 may also present any associated physiologicaldata and patient input data indicating that a modification to theelectrical stimulation may be appropriate.

Delivery of electrical stimulation for a first period of time to cause adesired therapeutic effect after termination of stimulation for a secondperiod of time may be achieved using a variety of different parameters.The electrical stimulation may be delivered with an intensity sufficientto cause a desired therapeutic effect at time after termination of thestimulation, but insufficient to cause an acute therapeutic responsesduring stimulation. Alternatively, the sub-threshold stimulation may bedelivered with an intensity sufficient to cause a desired therapeuticeffect after termination of the stimulation, but insufficient to causean acute physiological response during stimulation.

As one example, the electrical stimulation for inducing a desiredpost-stimulation therapeutic effect may have a current amplitude ofapproximately 0.1 mA to approximately 20 mA, a pulse width ofapproximately 10 microseconds to approximately 1000 microseconds, and apulse rate of approximately 0.5 Hz to approximately 500 Hz, deliveredfor a period of approximately 2 minutes to approximately 30 minutes, to,such as a current amplitude of 0.1 mA to 20 mA, a pulse width of 10microseconds to 1000 microseconds, and a pulse rate of 0.5 Hz to 500 Hz,delivered for a period of 2 minutes to 30 minutes, to be effective inproducing a desired therapeutic effect of a substantial reduction ofbladder contraction frequency after stimulation is terminated.

As another example, electrical stimulation having a current amplitude ofapproximately 0.5 mA to approximately 10 mA, a pulse width ofapproximately 100 microseconds to approximately 500 microseconds, and apulse rate of approximately 1.0 Hz to approximately 250 Hz, deliveredfor a period of approximately 5 to approximately 20 minutes, may beeffective in producing a desired therapeutic effect of a substantialreduction of bladder contraction frequency after stimulation isterminated. As a further example, electrical stimulation having acurrent amplitude of approximately 1.0 Hz to approximately 10 mA, apulse width of approximately 200 microseconds to approximately 300microseconds, and a pulse rate of approximately 1.0 Hz to approximately20 Hz, delivered for a period of approximately 10 minutes toapproximately 20 minutes, may be effective in producing a desiredtherapeutic effect of a substantial reduction of bladder contractionfrequency after stimulation is terminated. Depending upon the subject,one or more of these example stimulation parameters may also besufficient to generate sub-threshold electrical stimulation.

EXAMPLE

FIG. 9 is a graph that illustrates a change in bladder contractionfrequency in response to electrical stimulation and post-stimulationtherapeutic effect for different durations of stimulation delivered torat test subjects. The y-axis labeled “Frequency (normalized %)”indicates a frequency of bladder contractions during electricalstimulation relative to the frequency of bladder contractions beforeelectrical stimulation was applied. In order to determine the “Frequency(normalized %),” bladder contraction frequencies during electricalstimulation were normalized by dividing bladder contraction frequenciesduring electrical stimulation by a control frequency for the rat testsubject, the control frequency being the bladder contraction frequencyobserved prior to delivery of any electrical stimulation.

The results in the graph of FIG. 9 illustrate that lower intensities ofelectrical stimulation (e.g., intensities that are insufficient to causea desired therapeutic effect during stimulation but sufficient to causethe desired therapeutic effect after termination of stimulation)delivered to the spinal nerve of the rat test subject for approximately10 minutes and 20 minutes (but not approximately 2 minutes and 5minutes) inhibited bladder rhythmic contraction in rats. Maximalinhibition of bladder contractions appeared approximately 10 minutesafter termination of stimulation, i.e., post-stimulation. In contrast,there were no acute therapeutic responses to the lower intensityneurostimulation during the stimulation periods. Additionally, higherintensity stimulations of a duration of approximately 10 minutes inducedan acute quieting response of the bladder contractions, as well as alonger term, post-stimulation response.

The experimental results shown in FIG. 9 indicate that termination ofelectrical stimulation may induce urinary bladder quieting, i.e.,reduction in bladder contraction frequency, such that termination ofelectrical stimulation may be used to configure electrical stimulationtherapy for bladder dysfunction. The ON phase duration of electricalstimulation may be at least approximately 10 minutes, which may befollowed by an OFF phase. The stimulation may be insufficient to causethe desired therapeutic effect during stimulation. The therapeuticeffect of this stimulation cycling may be measurable as long termmodulation of a neural or other physiological response after stimulationis terminated, and not necessarily as an acute physiological responseduring stimulation. Wider applications to other neural systems andtherapies may be provided.

The data illustrated in the graph of FIG. 9 was obtained from aplurality of tests performed on Sprague-Dawley female laboratory ratsweighing approximately 200 grams (g) to approximately 300 g. To recordbladder contractions, a cannula (a PE 50—polyethylene cannula, e.g.,having a 0.58 mm inner diameter) was placed into the bladder of eachtest subject via the urethra which was ligated to create anisovolumetric bladder. The urethral cannula was connected via a T-typeconnector (e.g., a three terminal connector) to a low volume pressuretransducer of a data acquisition system. The other end of the T-typeconnector was linked to a 20 cubic centimeter (cc) syringe with aperfusion pump.

To deliver electrical stimulation, a wire electrode was placedbilaterally under the L6 spinal nerve of the test subject. The dorsalskin around the sacral and thoracic surface of the test subject wasshaved and a dorsal midline incision was made from approximately spinalnerve L3 to S2. The L6/S1 posterior processes were exposed. The S1processes were removed and the L6 nerve trunks localized caudal andmedial to the sacroiliac junction. After the wire electrode was placedunder each nerve with two bared portions of Teflon-coated, 40-guage,stainless steel wire, silicone adhesive was applied to cover the wirearound the nerve, and sutured shut. The wire electrode was connected toa stimulus isolator (an SIU-V Grass Medical Instruments StimulusIsolation Unit available from Astro-Med, Inc of West Warwick, R.I.) witha Grass S88 stimulator. A needle electrode under the skin of the tail ofthe test subject served as the ground. The stimulator generated pulsesto both nerves serially.

To induce rhythmic bladder contractions, saline was infused into thebladder of the test subject at a rate of approximately 50 microlitersper minute (μL/minute) to induce a micturition reflex (defined here asbladder contraction with intensity>10 millimeters of mercury (mmHg)).The infusion rate was then lowered to approximately 10 μL per minuteuntil 3-5 consecutive contractions were established. Infusion was thenterminated.

In general, FIG. 9 shows effects of different stimulation durations ofspinal nerve stimulation on isovolumetric bladder contractions. Insummary, electrical stimulation for approximately 10 minutes and 20minutes induced post-stimulation bladder-quieting responses (i.e.,contract frequency reductions) to stimulation for approximately 10 to 20minutes (p<0.05, two-way ANOVA). The key in FIG. 9 illustrates thenumber of rats (n) tested for each condition. By considering two factors(inhibitory effects to different time points in control and stimulatedrats), the inhibitory effects by stimulation is statisticallysignificant. Such analysis has been tested by 2-way ANOVA. The nullhypothesis is that stimulation does not affect the bladder contractions,and p<0.05 indicates that there is less than 5% chance that the nullhypothesis is true. This statistically significant indication has beenmade for when electrical stimulation of approximately 10 minutes and 20minutes induced post-stimulation bladder-quieting responses. Suchresults were repeatable in many rats, as indicated by the n value. Forexample, 8 rats, 7 rats, 7 rats, 11 rats, and 9 rats were tested withelectrical stimulation for 1 minute, 2 minutes, 5 minutes, 10 minutes,and 20 minutes, respectively.

During the tests, bladder contractions of one or more test subjects wereobserved during a period prior to, during, and after stimulation(labeled in FIG. 9 as −15 min to 20 min). During observation, the testsubject was provided with electrical stimulation (to a spinal nerve) fordifferent durations of time. The data in FIG. 9 has been adjusted sothat the entire duration of stimulation is represented as a singlepoint, at “Stim” along the x-axis of FIG. 9. In addition, box 140indicates the point in time of the electrical stimulation delivery foreach group. This allows the onset and offset of the respectivestimulation periods to be aligned in FIG. 9. For each test run (i.e.,each observation period), a frequency of bladder contractions wasdetermined at approximately 5 minute intervals. The determinedfrequencies of bladder contractions were then normalized (i.e., dividedby) by a frequency of bladder contractions of the test subject at −5minutes. The normalized bladder contraction frequencies are graphed inFIG. 9.

The duration of the stimulation period delivered to the test subject isindicated by the shape of the data point. The open-circle data pointsindicate measurement of contractions in subjects that did not receiveelectrical stimulation (the control group). Accordingly, the open-circledata points are equal to approximately 100% normalized frequency. Thediamond data points indicate measurement of contractions in subjectsthat received stimulation for about 2 minutes. The stimulation indicatedby the diamond data points was delivered as continuous pulses at afrequency (i.e., pulse rate) of 10 Hz, a pulse width of 100 μs, and anamplitude that resulted at approximately the threshold stimulationintensity for each test subject (e.g., the mean current pulse amplitudefor the stimulation was about 0.21 mA). As described in this disclosure,the physiological threshold stimulation intensity is the stimulationintensity at which stimulation causes a certain acute physiologicalresponse, e.g., a motor threshold, a stimulation perception threshold, anon-therapeutic effect, or a detected physiological response, such asnerve action potentials. In the example of FIG. 9, the current amplitudewas selected such that the stimulation intensity met the motor thresholdintensity that induced an acute motor response, i.e., muscle twitch inthe example of FIG. 9, in the subject. However, this stimulationintensity was insufficient to cause the desired therapeutic effectduring stimulation delivery.

The downward-oriented triangle data points (i.e., the triangles withpoints oriented downward) indicate measurement of contractions insubjects that received stimulation for about 5 minutes. The stimulationindicated by the downward triangle data points was delivered at afrequency of 10 Hz and an amplitude that resulted in the physiologicalthreshold stimulation intensity for each test subject (mean of about0.21 mA). The upward-oriented triangle data points (i.e., the triangleswith points oriented upward) indicate measurement of contractions insubjects that received stimulation for about 10 minutes. The stimulationindicated by the upward triangle data points was delivered at afrequency of 10 Hz and an amplitude that resulted in the physiologicalthreshold stimulation intensity for each test subject (mean of about0.16 mA).

The closed-circle data points indicate measurement of contractions insubjects that received stimulation for about 20 minutes. The stimulationindicated by the closed-circle data points was delivered at a frequencyof 10 Hz and an amplitude that resulted in the physiological thresholdstimulation intensity for each test subject (mean of about 0.21 mA).Each of the data points includes a standard deviation bar to indicatethe amount of variation between measurements. The standard deviationbars, e.g., illustrated in one example as standard deviation bar 142,are included to indicate the standard deviation between measurementsused to produce each data point.

With respect to the downward-oriented triangle data points and thediamond data points, the stimulation caused substantially no change inthe bladder contraction frequency, either during or after stimulation.

With respect to the closed-circle data points and the upward-orientedtriangle data points, the stimulation may have provided some inhibitionof bladder contraction frequency during the time when stimulation wasprovided (20 minutes and 10 minutes, respectively). Additionally, the10-minute and 20-minute stimulations each elicited a greater inhibitionof bladder contraction frequency after the stimulation was terminated.For example, about 10 minutes after stimulation was terminated (i.e., atthe 10 minute mark), the bladder contraction frequency was reduced tobetween about 40% and about 60% of the control frequency for each of the10-minute stimulation and the 20-minute stimulation. Accordingly, FIG. 9illustrates that relatively low intensity stimulation at a frequency ofabout 10 Hz may elicit a greater physiological response afterstimulation is terminated than when the stimulation is being deliveredto the patient. Little to no physiological response was detected duringthe delivery of stimulation within box 140.

The techniques described in this disclosure, including those attributedto IMD 16, programmer 24, or various constituent components, may beimplemented, at least in part, in hardware, software, firmware or anycombination thereof. For example, various aspects of the techniques maybe implemented within one or more processors, including one or moremicroprocessors, DSPs, ASICs, FPGAs, or any other equivalent integratedor discrete logic circuitry, as well as any combinations of suchcomponents, embodied in programmers, such as physician or patientprogrammers, stimulators, image processing devices or other devices. Theterm “processor” or “processing circuitry” may generally refer to any ofthe foregoing logic circuitry, alone or in combination with other logiccircuitry, or any other equivalent circuitry.

Such hardware, software, and/or firmware may be implemented within thesame device or within separate devices to support the various operationsand functions described in this disclosure. While the techniquesdescribed herein are primarily described as being performed by controlmodule 50 of IMD 16 and/or control module 70 of programmer 14, any oneor more parts of the techniques described herein may be implemented by aprocessor of one of IMD 16, programmer 14, or another computing device,alone or in combination with each other.

In addition, any of the described units, modules or components may beimplemented together or separately as discrete but interoperable logicdevices. Depiction of different features as modules or units is intendedto highlight different functional aspects and does not necessarily implythat such modules or units must be realized by separate hardware orsoftware components. Rather, functionality associated with one or moremodules or units may be performed by separate hardware or softwarecomponents, or integrated within common or separate hardware or softwarecomponents.

When implemented in software, the functionality ascribed to the systems,devices and techniques described in this disclosure may be embodied asinstructions on a computer-readable medium such as RAM, ROM, NVRAM,EEPROM, FLASH memory, magnetic data storage media, optical data storagemedia, or the like. The instructions may be executed to support one ormore aspects of the functionality described in this disclosure.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A system comprising: a stimulationcircuitry configured to generate and deliver electrical stimulation to apatient; and processing circuitry configured to: control the stimulationcircuitry to deliver the electrical stimulation to the patient; identifya first intensity level of the electrical stimulation below which theelectrical stimulation does not produce a therapeutic effect duringdelivery of the electrical stimulation; control the stimulationcircuitry to incrementally reduce stimulation intensity of theelectrical stimulation from the first intensity level to a secondintensity level, wherein the electrical stimulation at the secondintensity level does not produce a post-stimulation therapeutic effect;and control the stimulation circuitry to deliver the electricalstimulation to the patient above the second intensity level for a periodof time to produce the post-stimulation therapeutic effect.
 2. Thesystem of claim 1, wherein the first intensity is below an intensity ofat least one of a therapeutic threshold or a physiological threshold ofthe patient.
 3. The system of claim 1, wherein the first intensity isbelow an intensity of a perception threshold for the patient.
 4. Thesystem of claim 1, wherein the processing circuitry is configured toselect a lower intensity for the electrical stimulation that is stillabove the second intensity level to reduce power consumption duringdelivery of the electrical stimulation.
 5. The system of claim 1,wherein the electrical stimulation above the second intensity level andbelow the first intensity level is insufficient to cause the therapeuticeffect during the delivery of the electrical stimulation but sufficientto induce the post-stimulation therapeutic effect after the delivery ofthe electrical stimulation is terminated at expiration of the period oftime.
 6. The system of claim 1, wherein the processing circuitry isconfigured to control the stimulation circuitry to deliver theelectrical stimulation to the patient above the second intensity levelfor the period of time of approximately 5 minutes to approximately 30minutes.
 7. The system of claim 6, wherein the period of time is a firstperiod of time, and wherein the post-stimulation therapeutic effect isinduced during a second period of time following termination of theelectrical stimulation, and wherein the second period of time is fromapproximately 5 minutes to approximately 30 minutes.
 8. The system ofclaim 1, wherein the processing circuitry is configured to lock outdelivery of subsequent electrical stimulation to the patient followingexpiration of the period of time.
 9. The system of claim 1, wherein theprocessing circuitry is configured to determine a therapy window for thepost-stimulation therapeutic effect and control the stimulationcircuitry to begin the delivery of the electrical stimulation above thesecond intensity level such that the electrical stimulation of theperiod of time is terminated prior to the therapy window.
 10. The systemof claim 1, wherein the electrical stimulation configured to produce thepost-stimulation therapeutic effect comprises electrical pulses selectedwith a frequency from approximately 1 hertz and approximately 50 hertz,a pulse width from approximately 50 microseconds and approximately 500microseconds, and an amplitude selected to achieve electricalstimulation intensity above the second intensity level and below thefirst intensity level.
 11. The system of claim 1, wherein thepost-stimulation therapeutic effect comprises at least one of a reducedbladder contraction frequency or a reduced bladder pressure.
 12. Thesystem of claim 1, further comprising an implantable medical devicecomprising the stimulation circuitry and the processing circuitry.
 13. Amethod comprising: controlling, by processing circuitry, a stimulationcircuitry to deliver electrical stimulation to a patient; identifying,by the processing circuitry, a first intensity level of the electricalstimulation below which the electrical stimulation does not produce atherapeutic effect during delivery of the electrical stimulation;controlling, by the processing circuitry, the stimulation circuitry toincrementally reduce stimulation intensity of the electrical stimulationfrom the first intensity level to a second intensity level, wherein theelectrical stimulation at the second intensity level does not produce apost-stimulation therapeutic effect; and controlling, by the processingcircuitry, the stimulation circuitry to deliver the electricalstimulation to the patient above the second intensity level for a periodof time to produce the post-stimulation therapeutic effect.
 14. Themethod of claim 13, wherein the first intensity is below an intensity ofat least one of a therapeutic threshold or a physiological threshold ofthe patient.
 15. The method of claim 13, wherein the first intensity isbelow an intensity of a perception threshold for the patient.
 16. Themethod of claim 13, further comprising selecting, by the processingcircuitry, a lower intensity for the electrical stimulation that isstill above the second intensity level to reduce power consumptionduring delivery of the electrical stimulation.
 17. The method of claim13, wherein the electrical stimulation above the second intensity leveland below the first intensity level is insufficient to cause thetherapeutic effect during the delivery of the electrical stimulation butsufficient to induce the post-stimulation therapeutic effect after thedelivery of the electrical stimulation is terminated at expiration ofthe period of time.
 18. The method of claim 13, wherein controlling thestimulation circuitry to deliver the electrical stimulation to thepatient above the second intensity level for the period of timecomprises controlling the stimulation circuitry to deliver theelectrical stimulation to the patient above the second intensity levelfor the period of time of approximately 5 minutes to approximately 30minutes.
 19. The method of claim 18, wherein the period of time is afirst period of time, and wherein the post-stimulation therapeuticeffect is induced during a second period of time following terminationof the electrical stimulation, and wherein the second period of time isfrom approximately 5 minutes to approximately 30 minutes.
 20. The methodof claim 13, further comprising locking out delivery of subsequentelectrical stimulation to the patient following expiration of the periodof time.
 21. The method of claim 13, further comprising determining atherapy window for the post-stimulation therapeutic effect andcontrolling the stimulation circuitry to begin the delivery of theelectrical stimulation above the second intensity level such that theelectrical stimulation of the period of time is terminated prior to thetherapy window.
 22. The method of claim 13, wherein the electricalstimulation configured to produce the post-stimulation therapeuticeffect comprises electrical pulses selected with a frequency fromapproximately 1 hertz and approximately 50 hertz, a pulse width fromapproximately 50 microseconds and approximately 500 microseconds, and anamplitude selected to achieve electrical stimulation intensity above thesecond intensity level and below the first intensity level.
 23. Themethod of claim 13, wherein the post-stimulation therapeutic effectcomprises at least one of a reduced bladder contraction frequency or areduced bladder pressure.
 24. A computer-readable storage mediumcomprising instructions that, when executed, cause processing circuitryto: control a stimulation circuitry to deliver electrical stimulation toa patient; identify a first intensity level of the electricalstimulation below which the electrical stimulation does not produce atherapeutic effect during delivery of the electrical stimulation;control the stimulation circuitry to incrementally reduce stimulationintensity of the electrical stimulation from the first intensity levelto a second intensity level, wherein the electrical stimulation at thesecond intensity level does not produce a post-stimulation therapeuticeffect; and control the stimulation circuitry to deliver the electricalstimulation to the patient above the second intensity level for a periodof time to produce the post-stimulation therapeutic effect.